The Legend of Zelda: The Ocean Fortress
by Reily96
Summary: In the sea-side kingdom of Hyrule, Link and Zelda are friends training under his grandpa. However, when a man from the desert comes and takes Zelda to a fortress somewhere in the ocean, Link must save her with the help of man cursed by the goddesses.
1. Lateness

Another serious type fanfic from me. I like writing them quite a bit really. As far as I know, the storyline should be completely original as I dreamt it. And what a _cool freaking_ _dream it was_. It might reference to some other Zelda games but overall, it has no place in the Zelda timelines. I based Hyrule by the sea for two reasons, it makes the story easier to write... and I simply love the ocean. Being a native Floridian, the sea has a special place in my heart (yes, I really enjoyed WW).

Well, as always, my first chapter is short. Oh well, I can only hope it catches your attention and you guys'll stick around for more. Enjoy!

* * *

The waves were splish-splashing on rocks and sand, palm trees were swaying in the in the ocean breezes. Warm sunlight poured in through his window and slowly made its way to the young boy's eyes.

The warmth and brightness of the light slipped through his eyelids. The boy made strange facial expressions as he tried to figure out what was causing the strange light in his dreams. Realizing he was asleep, he slowly opened his eyes, shutting them immediately from the brightness of the sun.

The sun… The sun?! His eyes ripped open and he sat up, looking at the position of the sun. He scrambled out of his bed quickly and ran to another room in the sea-side cottage to see that the bed there was neatly made and devoid of any sleeping old men.

"Crap! Grandpa's going to kill me!" The boy exclaimed to himself. He scrambled back into his room, frantically putting on his green tunic and hat, and jumping into a pair of old boots that really needed replacing. He looked around and found his wooden sword and ran out of the house.

He was late. Very, very late. He remembered he had spent the whole night awake practicing his sword techniques. His grandfather, a skilled swordsman and official instructor at Hyrule Castle, told him that if he didn't get to sleep, he'd wake up late and wouldn't wake him up in the morning. His grandfather had said that plenty of times before and never kept his promise, but today he did.

The boy cursed the distance between the sea-side shack and the castle. With his grandfather being the instructor at the castle, it would've made more sense to live more inland but his grandfather would always say, "Living by the sea is like nothing else!" every time they were invited to live in the castle.

He kept running and running as fast as he could. Passing by the market with all his might and startling a few of the townsfolk in the process. He thought he might have gotten a bunch of cuccos in one particular stall to go haywire, but he couldn't stop. He was already hideously late. He only slowed down when approaching the gates to the castle.

"Link? Is that you?" One of the guards said. "Kid, you are _late!_"

"I know, I know, let me in!" Link snapped, trying to catch his breath. The guard said no more and he and his partner moved aside. The boy dashed right through and sped towards the training yard. His chest was pounding and he had a waterfall of sweat coming down on him, at this point. His whole body was screaming "SLOW DOWN!"

Wait… it wasn't his body…

"SLOW DOWN!" His grandfather cried out.

Link came to an abrupt stop and tripped over himself, making a nice face-plant into the grass. He wanted to push himself up and spit all the dirt from his mouth but he had used up too much energy in just trying to get where he was now. However, a certain giggle perked him up and made him stand upright, flushing until his face was as red as a tomato.

Princess Zelda had seen him plummet to the ground at full force. She was standing behind his grandfather, laughing softly with a small wooden sword in her hand. His face had gotten redder when he was sure that she was laughing at him.

"Boy," Link's attention was at the old man, "I should have your balls for coming this late!" He snapped.

The boy winced and avoided eye contact.

"But seeing as you made such an effort to come here as fast as you could… I'm just gonna take one of your balls."

Zelda began to laugh harder. She was trying not to, Link could tell, but she couldn't help herself. Link just found himself wishing he had woken up earlier. He didn't really care if any other girl heard his grandfather's lecture, but the _princess?!_

He then felt a hard pat on his back and heard his grandfather laughing now too. "Haha! Boy, you know I don't mean it! Now let's forget about your tadry here and start with today's training!"


	2. Enter Ganondorf

First chapter was boring, this one's better, promise. And yes, there's a pun in someone's name in here. I couldn't help it... Sorry.

* * *

Training was normal that day, but because of his previous exercise in the morning, by the time it had finished Link was worn out. The fact that it was a very hot day didn't help either. Sensing that the boy was at his limits, his grandfather went to bring the children some water.

"Hey, Link, are you okay?" Zelda asked as Link plopped onto the floor in pure exhaustion.

"Just really tired. It's nothing to worry about, Princess." He smiled, trying to control his breathing.

"Link, you don't have to call me princess. Zelda's fine, really." She said, returning a smile.

Link blushed slightly. He and Zelda had been friends since they were very little but he was so used to calling her princess. Zelda just preferred to skip all the formalities since they knew each other so well. Still, Link just got nervous calling her just by her first name.

"Sorry, Zelda…" He strained to say. Zelda smiled again and sat next to Link. A breeze came by and Link accepted it gratefully. Zelda also seemed to be enjoying the breeze as well. She had trained hard too and was improving pretty fast for a beginner.

"You know, you've been improving a lot since you first started." Link said.

Zelda shrugged and pulled some stray hairs behind her ear. "I guess… I still think I'm just as bad as last time. Do you really think that or are you just saying it because I'm a princess?"

"No, nothing like that!" Link started. "I mean, I'll always be completely honest with you!"

Zelda smirked. "So if I wasn't really getting better you'd say it right to my face without worry?"

She'd backed him into a corner, as she always did. Link could do nothing but smile nervously, afraid of how he should respond. Trying to avoid looking at her he turned quickly to see if his grandfather was coming yet. Instead of seeing the old man, though, he saw a royal escort guiding a red-haired man in black to the throne room. He didn't remember hearing about any visitors to the castle…

"His name is Ganondorf." Zelda said. Link glanced at her to see a look of utter disgust on her face. He then looked back at the group to see them going out of view. "He just came yesterday. He said he's a traveler from the desert but I don't like him."

"Well, why not? Not saying that I like him either, though. He looks creepy…" Link said.

"I don't really know. It's like that feeling when you first meet a person and you immediately dislike them. That's the best way I can describe it. He just seems…" She was trying to find the right word and Link had a pretty good idea of the right word.

"Evil."

"Yes, that's the prefect word!" Zelda said.

"What's the perfect word, now?" Link's grandfather had returned and he was carrying a tray with three glasses of water.

"Thanks, grandpa." Link said as he reached for a glass.

"Yes, thank you Master Kendo." Zelda said, also reaching for a glass.

After they had the water break, Kendo had Link help get the equipment ready. For the most part, the equipment used in training stayed at the castle, but some of the things they brought from home. It was mainly those items they had gathered together. Eventually, Kendo went to get a wheelbarrow, or something to that effect, to make transportation earlier.

"Hey, why don't you tell your dad what you think about that Ganondorf, guy? He'll probably listen to you." Link told Zelda.

The princess thought about for a moment, a look of worry on her face. "He might, he might not… But I'll try."

That's when Kendo had come back. They all said their goodbyes, even though they were going to meet the next day. Not for training but just for some quality time. Well, Kendo would go to do some instruction for the new recruits and of course some review for the current soldiers and guards, but the children didn't have to train tomorrow.

The sun was high in the sky now, just starting to show it was going to get past noon soon. The tide would be up when they got home, Link figured. Maybe he'd fish or maybe he'd train some more. He felt the aches in muscles then. Fishing sounded better.

* * *

Link had walked over to the castle the next day, this time not in a hurry. He woke up on time but he still had arrived a little late. His muscles were screaming from the marathon he performed the day before. Zelda wasn't mad, though. She never really had gotten angry at Link. Most of the time, she'd just play around with him and fake anger.

She was in more formal clothing today. Yesterday she wore training clothes consisting of a shirt and pants, today she wore an elegant dress. It was a light dress, as it was summer and to wear something heavy would be bothersome. Still, it wasn't a dress that screamed "I'm a princess, bow down!" It was an elegant pink dress that still looked casual. It gave off her royal nature while at the same time presenting a modest attitude about it. Link always felt underdressed around her…

As always, there was always a guard near the princess at all times. This bothered her as it used to unnerve Link but, he'd gotten used to it by now. Zelda still didn't like it but she understood why the guard was always there. From what Link understood, though, she had to convince her father to keep her from being surrounded by a whole squad of guards.

"So, did you talk your dad yesterday about that guy?" Link asked.

"Hmm? Oh yes, I did…" her head lowered in disappointment. "He said I was worrying too much and that I shouldn't judge anyone by appearances alone."

"Oh…"

"Still, I know there's something fishy about that man!" Zelda said firmly.

Link sniffed the air and turned to see that they were walking by the fish mart. "Are you sure it's not the stall there?"

Zelda rolled her eyes, "No, no! I'm being serious here, Link! Something is definitely wrong here! I just have a horrible feeling… like something's going to happen…" She said softly.

Link didn't know what to think. Zelda was usually pretty good with her gut feelings but… nothing bad ever happened in Hyrule. As far as he could recall, nothing truly horrible and threatening happened in his lifetime. He just patted Zelda on the back and then quickly retracted his hand once he received a dirty look from the guard. "Well, I don't think anything bad's going to happen, Zelda. I mean, maybe you're just…" He was afraid to say it.

"Overreacting." Zelda finished. She looked down at the floor as they walked. It wasn't really a problem. When Zelda walked, normally everyone cleared a path for her so she wouldn't bump into anyone. Still, she seemed disappointed at Link's response. She then perked up and smiled a bit. "Maybe you and father right? I guess I am just overreacting." She kept smiling and then walked ahead. Still, Link could tell it was a fake smile.

Soon the conversation was forgotten, though. They had started doing what children do best: playing. They had found some other children in the market place and began to play games of tag and chase the cucco. The guard wasn't very happy about all of this, but whatever princess says, princess gets. Eventually, they all ended up going to the beach, which irritated the guard even more. They fed the seagulls, built sandcastles, chased crabs. Overall, it was turning out to be a fun day. Something that really is what all children want. But as the day was drawing to a close and the guard was desperately urging Zelda to return to the castle, Zelda seemed to grow a little serious again.

As they were walking back, she asked, "Link, do you remember your mother?"

Link was puzzled. "Where did that come from?"

"It's just… I never asked before because I thought it was a touchy subject but… I think it's something we could maybe both relate to." She said. Link remembered then. Zelda had also lost her mother at a young age, just like him. "Sometimes I do… But it's just small things really. I can kind of remember her voice… I don't remember her face, though."

Link shrugged. "I don't remember anything." He said.

Zelda looked at him, a little surprised.

"Well, I don't. I'm not going lie about it… All I remember is grandpa taking care of me ever since my mother disappeared." He said.

It was quiet again and the sky was beginning to darken into shades of orange and dark blue. The two had gotten into a more light conversation, mostly about the things they had done that day. Then, the soldier suddenly stepped in front Zelda and stopped. Surprised, they look on ahead and saw the man from the desert approaching. This time around, he had no entourage. His face was expressionless as he walked closer and closer. Link saw Zelda tense up, and he even felt himself tense up too. He didn't know why, though. Ganondorf then began to pass the children and the guard, but he paused glancing at the children. A sinister smile came across his face as he looked at the children, mainly Zelda, but before the guard could say "move on" he continued on. No one, not even the guard, had moved until the man was quite a distance away. They all managed to free themselves from their self-imposed parlyzation and continued to walk stiffly to the gates of the castle. It was quiet the rest of the way.

Link stopped at the gates of the castle and Zelda paused to look at him. This was normally the part where they said goodbye for the day, but none of them said anything. All Link could muster was, "I think… I think you should talk to your dad again."

"I think so too." Zelda responded.

Then, they both turned and left.


	3. Hurricane

Thank you for the review **Writin' Dude**! I'll be the first to admit, though. there will be errors in the story. Once I finish writing a chapter, I don't really look them over afterwards for mistakes. Not assuming there aren't any, I just don't. Most of the time, i go back and look them over later. Still, thanks for skimming over my little errors of stupidity! :D

Short chapter...

* * *

Storms were the worst times to live on the beach. There was always a chance of flooding and the winds were horrible. This storm had come out of nowhere that night. There weren't any signs of a storm coming during the day. If there were, Kendo would have gotten Link to stay at home and prepare the shutters and other supplies that might not be available after a big storm. This storm could've been hurricane force and that was the strange part… Hurricanes just don't appear out of nowhere.

Dismissing it as just bad luck, since it was hurricane season, Link and his grandfather just checked to make sure all the windows were closed shut and then tried to get some sleep. The boy was pretty sure that his grandfather fell asleep immediately, as he began to snore shortly after he entered his room. Link, on the other hand, had a hard time of it. He knew his father had died during a hurricane so big storms almost always made him feel uneasy. Eventually, through the sound of the wind whipping at the walls and windows, he managed to fall into a fitful sleep. His dreams were plagued by a large fortress on the sea, the Princess Zelda calling out for his help, and the frightening man from the desert. Occasionally, a less fearsome image popped in. It was of a small island and on that island there was a large house; almost like a mansion or a castle but, for the most part it seemed deserted. However, after the brief images of this strange island came, they soon went and returned to his previous nightmares. His mind couldn't take the dreams any longer.

He woke up very early the next morning in a cold sweat. So early, he could still hear his grandfather snoring in the other room. The wind and rain had stopped, though, leaving the house quiet for the most part.

Still tired, but not wanting to go back to sleep, he slipped off his bed and decided to check on the rest of the house. He was glad to see that there was nothing wrong on the inside. He supposed they might've noticed a bit earlier if there were. He imagined a hole ripping itself into their roof would've woken both him and his grandfather up quickly.

He went back to his room and slipped on his boots, so he could check on the outside, but he didn't bother to change out of his pajamas.

The sight outside was much different from the inside. The sun was up, not high but up, and as with most days after a big storm, the sky was clear and beautiful, but that was the only thing pretty about it. The house was covered in debris and there were few indents and chips on the walls and roof. Palm trees slightly hunched over from the winds, missing most of their frawns. Drift wood scattered the beach, sails from boats were hanging off trees or caught on rocks. Link was used to seeing this sort of thing. What he was not used to seeing, however, were dead seagulls. There weren't that many, just a few scattered here and there, but animals knew when hurricanes or other things like that were coming. They'd usually take off before they came. The seagulls didn't know that storm was coming?

Later that morning, Kendo also came out to check on things, also finding the dead birds strange. Things had to be done, though, so they began the process of clearing the outside of the house and fixing it up as much as they could at the moment. The damage was mostly minimal, not requiring too much work, but there were a few things that required supplies they didn't have. They would go into the market the next morning to get what they needed, if the stores were open. Well, Kendo would anyways. Link planned to stop by the castle, just to see if things were okay. As for now, Kendo didn't want Link going out into the town. It was understandable, he supposed, the roads were probably blocked.

The rest of the day came and went. Link slept better than he had during the hurricane, but Zelda's cries for help still plagued his dreams. He hoped she was fine…

And she was. Well, at least according to the guard at the gate of the castle. The guard said that no one was allowed to enter the castle except for the usual staff because of the hurricane. The suddenness also seemed to surprise the castle and it suffered minor damages from the storm. Still, until it was fully repaired, no civilians (except for the staff), were allowed to enter. Link figured as much, to be honest. The king was very much into appearances. If anyone had seen the castle in disarray, he'd fear his reputation might change for the worse. Even though the guard said everything was fine, Link was still a little uneasy. Something the guard had noticed.

"Don't worry, kid. I saw her just this morning. She looked a little glum, but she's fine!" He reassured. "Us guards wouldn't let anyone harm the princess! You don't have to worry!" He smiled and then rubbed his nose with his thumb.

Link tried to act like he was relieved. He put enough of an act up to fool the guard and said, "Thanks, I guess I'm just a bit worried after that hurricane. It was pretty bad…"

"Sure was. Came out of nowhere!" the guard said.

Link said a quick "see ya" and then turned to head back home. The guard didn't seem like he was lying, and that guard in particular was a horrible liar, so she must've been okay. But why did she seem depressed? And why was he worrying so much?! He never worried like this when other hurricanes hit? What was making this one so different?!

Finally, he managed to push it back into the depths of his mind. Zelda was fine, the house was fine, he and his grandfather were fine… That was all that mattered, right? Yeah, everything was fine. Those weird dreams of his… those must've been what were making him paranoid. As he walked back home, he wondered what he had eaten that night to give him such nightmares.


	4. Disappeared

Next chapter. Well, I might start updating this on a weekly basis, as certain school activities -coughresearchpapersthatareduenextweekandIhaven'tstartedcough- will keep me busy for a bit. The weekend will be spent entirely devoted to um... the product of my procrastination. That and if I get writer's block, I still have a little bit of time to try and come up with something. So let's say... Thursdays? I like Thursdays. So, it depends. I might update tomorrw and start the weekly thing then. Or I'll simply wait till next Thursday... We'll see. Here's hoping for tomorrow!

* * *

Within the next week, recovery from the storm was still going underway. In a few more weeks, Castle Town and the surrounding area would be somewhat back to normal. For the most part, civilians were not let into the castle, but Link and his grandfather were exceptions as they trained at the castle.

Link was glad to see that the guard had spoken true the day before. Zelda was fine, if not looking a bit concerned. She seemed to be in her own world which hindered her own training. After her training had finished that day, Kendo went on to do his classes for the guards and Link thought it the perfect time to figure out what was going on in Zelda's head.

"I've just been thinking…" She said distantly. She wasn't even looking at Link while she spoke.

"You've been thinking a lot more than you usually do then. You're acting weird, Zelda." Link told her.

She gave a small fake smile. "You really are always honest…" She paused for a moment. "I have a question for you Link…"

"Okay."

"Answer honestly, like you always do." She stressed.

"Okay…" he was confused.

"If something bad ever happened to me… Would you try to help me? I mean, like really come try and save me?" She asked, a slight blush appearing on her cheeks but still looking serious. Link felt a bit of his own face flush as well.

He was fumbling for words. At first, a few inaudible noises came out but the noises finally formed to words, "Yeah, um… of course I would! Definitely!"

She smiled again, a smile that was more real than her last but not completely. The blush on her face, however, was real. "That's good." She said, her voice shaking a little.

Weird… her voice was shaking… Link then noticed her whole body was shaking, as if she was frightened.

He was afraid to ask. "Zelda what's wrong?" he finally managed.

"Link…" She said, her face staring at the floor, trying to hide it. "That storm the other day…" Her voice was shaking tremendously. She hugged herself a little and managed to bring her frightened face up so she was making eye contact with Link. "It wasn't natural…"

"What?" He was even more confused now. A storm that wasn't natural? The only time he had ever heard of that was in stories. Those stories that old people were always telling kids like him. Where if they behaved badly a warlock would curse the weather or something like that…

Zelda then stared back at the floor and then she finally turned away completely. "I have to go." She said quickly. Then she ran off just as fast before Link could say anything to stop her.

Link spent most of the night wondering what Zelda meant in their conversation earlier. She was obviously scared to death; of that much he was certain. But what did she mean by an unnatural storm? Was she really implying magic or sorcerery by that? He'd never really seen magic himself, so he was never much of a believer. He never disbelieved it, though. He was sure it was a dead art. But if it was magic, who could use it? He didn't know about anyone in the castle who could (although, Zelda claimed she knew a little). No in the castle…

The man from the desert? He certainly didn't look like the type that could use magic, but Link knew that things were not always as they appeared. Still, appearances did strongly influence opinions…

Somewhere in his train of thought, sleep crept up on him. He didn't dream that night.

The next day he knew something wasn't right. Something didn't feel right when he awoke, something didn't feel right when he put on his tunic, something didn't feel right when he left the house. The boy came to the conclusion that something was definitely not right.

This notion was only fueled when he arrived to see the town in great disarray. Soldiers and guards were everywhere, scouring each and every market, house, alleyway, even crates. He asked around, but the soldiers didn't seem to want to have anything to do with him and the townspeople just plain didn't know.

Feeling a lump in the back of his throat, he swiftly walked over to the castle trying to remain calm. The gate had no guards today. The lump felt bigger now and he ran to the nearest person he could see, a linen maid by the name of Rayeh. He asked her what was going on and she bit her thumb and looked around nervously.

"We should talk about this in a less… conspicuous place. Follow me." She said. Link nodded and followed, noticing that she wasn't the only one who seemed disturbed. Everyone they passed seemed uneasy. Rayeh then opened a door and gestured for tge boy to follow her inside. It was the linen closet.

"This should be good for now… Most of the other linen maids don't come until a little later…" She said. She plopped down on a stack of sheets, rubbing her temples with her fingers.

"What's going on?" Link asked again.

She sighed. "No one's really supposed to know, but somehow the whole castle found out. I'm begging you not to tell anyone this and I know it might be a little difficult for you to handle…"

"What's going to be difficult for me to handle?" He asked hesitantly.

She sighed again, looked up at the ceiling and then at Link. She opened her mouth to say something, shut it, and then opened it again. "The princess has disappeared Link." She finally said.

"D-disappeared?!" He practically shouted.

The maid shushed him quickly. "Yes, disappeared. Gone from the night without a trace. No one knows what happened… But I think it was a kidnapping."

"Kidnapping?" Link said faintly. This had to be a really bad dream. _Had to be._

"That man from the desert…" Rayeh started. "He's gone too. You and the princess were right about him."

Link remembered to the day when they had crossed paths with Ganondorf the evening of the hurricane. He remembered how the man had looked at them, more specifically Zelda. Link knew it, it had to have been Ganondorf! "So why haven't they gone after him?!" He flared.

Rayeh bit her lip. "Because nothing proves it…" She mumbled.

"What do you mean nothing proves it! Zelda would've fought back right?! And someone must've seen the guy, he's huge! He's not really that hard to miss!" Link snapped.

The linen maid looked at him seriously and little taken aback. She continued, "The thing is… there wasn't any sign of a struggle and no one saw him last night. Everyone seems to think it's just coincidence that they've gone at the same time."

At a loss for words and just an overall feeling of numbness, he dropped down onto the stack of sheets that Rayeh was on. In just one night, something like that happened so fast. No one expected it… except maybe Zelda herself. But he hadn't thought of that yet, he hadn't thought of anything. He couldn't bring himself to think about anything. And then, one little thought crept into his head. He glanced blankly at the young woman sitting next to him, looking off into no-one-knows-where and looking concerned.

"Why do you think it was the guy from the desert?"

"Huh?" She said, snapping out of her daze. "Oh… the princess told me about him."

Link managed to bring a little bit of expression to his face. A look of slight puzzlement. Rayeh just gave a small, sad smile. "The princess has been very kind to me, a simple linen maid. The least I can do to repay that kindness is believe what she says."

Everything after that conversation became a blur. He just walked around aimlessly, thinking. He remembered the day before, to the conversation with Zelda. She was so distressed, so frightened… Did she know what was going on? She had to if she hadn't fight back. But what had happened that she would just let herself be taken away like that? With each question he asked himself, more questions flooded his mind. Questions he honestly didn't know the answer to and that frustrated him. Zelda was his best friend… the thought of her in danger, the thought of her possibly being…

_Don't think about that._ A voice in his head told him.

After that, he'd found himself back in reality's hands again. He was in the marketplace and the sun was starting to lower into late afternoon. Had he really been so distracted that so much time had passed? Frowning, he decided it best to go back home. He debated whether or not he should tell his grandfather when something caught his eye.

He was passing by the stall of Lenzo, a pictographer who was very proud of his pictographs. Most of the pictures were just there so he could show off, but occasionally he did sell prints. However, one of the pictures that caught his attention was one of the pictures not for sale. It was a picture of an island. On the island was a strangely familiar large, old, and deserted looking house. It looked exactly like the one that appeared when his nightmares had calmed themselves during the hurricane.

"Interested in that particular pictograph, lad?" Lenzo asked. The man's eyes were shining brightly, as they always did when anybody was paying so much attention to his pictographs. Before Link could respond, the man went on. "That pictograph I took while on my travels many years ago! I had found it just recently and I couldn't help but admire the spectacular mansion! It may look deserted, but I assure you, it is definitely inhabited! I remember catching glances of its tenants when the wind pushed the curtains by! Strangely, though, a mysterious wind came and pushed my sails away so quickly, the mansion was soon out of view. It was almost as if I was not welcomed there…"

The boy had, for the most part, tried to ignore the man's ramblings. In his opinion, Lenzo spoke too much. Still, he couldn't help but find it strange that the mansion he saw in his dream was a real place.

"Hey! Hey Link!" A voice cried out. Link's attention turned to the voice.

It belonged to the guard that followed Zelda around whenever she went out of the castle. Why was he out? Link went to meet with the guard, who slowed a panted a little.

"I-I've been... I've been looking… for you." He panted. He was holding himself up by grabbing his knees, taking deep breaths. "I ran all the way to your house… you weren't there so I ran… back to the castle… you weren't there so… so I ran out here… and now I found you…"

"Um, sorry?" Link shrugged.

The guard merely scowled and managed to stand up straight again. He reached into a bag he was carrying and took out an envelope. A pretty envelope that looked like it came from a woman's stationary. Link was about to question the guard's taste in stationary when he noticed Zelda's curly handwriting on it.

"The princess before… She gave it to me to give to you before she… well, you know…" The guard said, careful to watch his words in public. He held it out and Link took it. On the back of the envelope it said:

_Link_

_Read this when you're alone_

He ran back home.


	5. Goddess Farore

I know I said Thursdays, but I get antsy. So instead of working on my research paper like I said I would, I did this! But I'm going work on it for real now! Anyways, next update will be Thursday. I might do two updates a week depended on how fast I write these out. But for the most part, there will be an update every Thursday.

* * *

The first thing he did when he arrived was lock himself in his room and ignore the barrage of questions that Kendo threw at him. He simply tore open the letter, and began to read.

_Link, if you're reading this, then I've been declared missing. The fact is, I've been kidnapped… I really don't know. Does it count as kidnapping if the one napped went willingly? However, I did it for the good Hyrule… I'm sure I did…_

_The hurricane from the other day was not natural, I'm sure you remember me saying that. On the night of that hurricane, Ganondorf came to me in a dream. He told me of the Triforce and how I carry some of its power. He said that if I did not give him that power, then Hyrule would be drenched in everlasting rain and buffeted with unstoppable winds. _

_I don't know if I really have this power he seeks… But he wants it, and if he thinks I have it, then he can take it. _

_In my vision, he also mentioned a third power of the Triforce. He hardly spoke of it. I don't think he knows where it is. My knowledge may be limited on the Triforce, but I think I know where this third power is, and because of that… _

_Link, please, do not try to find me. I tell you this because you told me you would do anything to save me. Forget you ever said that, forget me. If not for my sake, than for your own. Ganondorf is incredibly powerful. To know that you are safe from him is all the comfort I need to make my imprisonment bearable._

_Zelda_

He wasn't sure what to make of the letter. Triforce? Visions? Being willingly kidnapped? And what did she mean not to look for her?! To forget about her?! He couldn't do that! His mind was shuffling between anger and confusion. His thoughts were racing, he had to go find her!

He heard his grandfather beating down his door. Then, the weight of the decision was coming down on him. Could he really just leave old Kendo here by himself? He was a tough man, of that Link definitely knew. But they were family. Could he really just leave his only family behind?

The door swung open with full force, and in the doorway there was a very agitated old man.

"Dammit, boy! You don't just march on into the house, lock yourself in your room and ignore _me_!" Kendo roared. He then began to go on a rant about respecting one's elders. Something Link was all too used to hearing. He tried to interrupt but the old man just kept going and going and going. Eventually, Link's voice was heard and was replied with a "What, boy?! What?!"

He handed his grandfather the letter, feeling he should have nothing to hide from him. After the old man had finished reading it, he stared at it for a while. His eyes were solemn and he looked more serious than Link had ever seen him. He finally managed to pull his stare from the paper and to his grandson. "Are you gonna go after her?"

"Yeah." Link said.

Kendo whipped off his belt and started pelting the boy with it, screaming, "Absolutely not! Yer stayin' here whether ya like it or not! You leave this serious stuff to the adults! Yer too young to be goin off and getting yerself into these situations-" And on and on it went as he kept whipping the poor boy. Of course, Link didn't just sit there and take the beating. He was running, backing himself into corners, sliding in between the old man's legs for escape, doing everything he could to avoid the belt and its buckle. However, every single time the belt always hit him, stinging him sharply and leaving behind tomato red welts and buckle imprints. Soon enough, Link felt tears burning down his cheeks. He hadn't been beaten like this for a long time and he forgot how much it could hurt.

The only reason Kendo had stopped beating Link was because both his arms had gotten too tired to lift the belt (one his right had tired out, he continued with his left). He grumbled off into his own room, slamming the door in the process. The boy cussed slightly under his breath and found that the only comfortable position that didn't invoke straining a particular welt was standing. Since he knew his legs would buckle anyway because of the welts on his calves, he just jumped on his bed, back first. His whole back felt like it was on fire, but he dealt with it by trying to tune it out. It didn't work but it stopped stinging after a while. He wasn't sure how long that while was, though. He just stared up at the ceiling, feeling useless for not being allowed to do anything.

Against his own will, he began to cry again. Not because of pain but this time because of the feeling of uselessness. He was just a kid. Kids couldn't do anything, right? As much as he might want to believe that he could go out there and save the damsel in distress, he couldn't because he was only a child. It was just wishful thinking… And if he could move or had the energy he would've punched something, kicked something, screamed something… But it wouldn't help.

"I… can't do anything… I'm just a kid…" He thought out loud. He supposed it was better that way. Zelda didn't want him to save her anyways…

Through the pain, he somehow fell asleep…

And he dreamed.

He was standing in what seemed like nothing. Everything was shrouded in blackness. He wasn't sure whether he should walk or just stay standing where he was. Before he could think any further on the subject, a bright pillar of light appeared before him. Materializing within the light was a woman. Her skin was fair and her lips a healthy shade of pink; a flowing gown covered her and seemed to always move, as did her light green hair. She opened her eyes, which were a rich deep, forest green, and smiled gently at Link, who wasn't sure how to react.

"Greetings child…" She said. Her voice was soft and gentle, almost like a mother's. "I am Farore, goddess of courage."

"Goddess?" Link asked blankly. He was still shocked by her entrance. The divinity part wasn't helping.

She continued to smile at him. "Yes. It was my sisters and I who created the land you live in. I am sure you have heard the story. Do you know of the Triforce, young one?" He shook his head blankly. "The Triforce is what my sisters and I left behind when we created the world. It is a thing of omnipotent power. However, it cannot distinguish good from evil."

"Um, excuse me your… goddessliness…" Link said. Farore still smiled and nodded gently at him. "What does this have to do with me?"

"It has more to do with you than you know. The holder of my sister Nayru's power, Zelda, she has told you that Ganondorf, who holds my sister Din's power, is searching for the Triforce, has she not? Nayru has told me that Zelda wished to keep you out of the situation; however, this is not possible. Your generation has little knowledge of Hyrule's past. It is plagued with a repetition of what is happening now. The only ones who are capable of stopping the evil that has reared its head again are the princess… and yourself, Link." Link shuddered when she said his name.

"But I'm just a kid." Link said.

"And a child has saved Hyrule more times than you know." She said with her sweet and gentle voice. She extended one of her ivory white hands and touched Link's cheek. "And you have more power than you know. Link, you are capable of great things and I know you will succeed in saving your princess. Just as Ganon has Din's power and Zelda has Nayru's power, you have my power."

She began to disappear and Link knew it was because he was waking up. "But where do I start?!" He tried to say. But in mid-sentence, he had woken up yelling the rest of the sentence. He was about to cuss when he heard the soft maternal voice in his head.

"There is a man in your marketplace with a picture of the place you need to go to. You've seen it before. If you go to that place, you'll meet a man who will give you…" her voice paused for a moment, "… an asset." And Link could've sworn that she had strained to say that.

Forgetting her strain on the word "asset," as well as the still swollen welts all over him, Link immediately began to look for some around him that might prove useful on his journey. Obviously he would pack food, water, extra underwear… he needed to know where to go first, though. He'd have to go and ask Lenzo. He looked out through the window and noted that it was early morning. He had slept for a longer time than he had thought but he supposed it worked out. While looking at the window, he took note of the small sailboat on the beach. It was his grandfather's but he never used it. It was still in good condition and Link had practiced with it enough. It would work.

Then he remembered about his grandfather. If he was that angry yesterday about Link's idea of going to rescue Zelda, he still probably wouldn't like it. Even if Farore had appeared right in front of Kendo, he probably would've given the goddess a run for his money.

_I'll have to steal it,_ Link thought, _I'll take it to the docks, get directions and anything else I might need…_

He packed his bag, slung his word over his shoulder, took the shield from the wall, and stole a few rupees from his grandfather's secret chest (which he kept under a creaky floorboard. Link had found it ages ago.).

He threw his things in the boat and saw that the wind would prove to be a little difficult with him. He didn't know how, but somehow he managed to get out of distance from his little house by the sea and towards the Castle Town docks. As he neared an empty dock, he felt a little bit guilty about leaving his grandfather behind… But he knew that his grandfather would only try to stop him… and the welts on him only stung out to remind him of how his grandfather would try and stop him.

Link made his way to Lenzo's stall, trying to forget his grandpa. The man was there, looking through some pictograps he had recently taken, Link had thought. The man then caught site of the boy and his eyes began to glimmer again as Link asked about the photo of the old mansion.

Lenzo then proceeded to tell Link that the island the mysterious mansion was on wasn't that far. It was a little ways to the west or south-west direction. Rather than letting Link find the way himself, the man managed to pull out a sea chart and he circled the area where the island was. He even gave Link the sea-chart saying, "I'm getting to old to travel around. I think I'd like to stay and take pictures of town living now." Link was sure that Lenzo didn't really think the boy was actually going to go to the island.

Afterwards, Link rushed back to the boat, grateful that this time the wind was cooperating with him.

* * *

I have a violent grandpa like Kendo. Luckily, nothing ever happened to me. I can't say as much for my cousins, though... But don't worry, they are good upstanding citizens. The worst one of them has ever done is parkour.

Anyways, we get to meet two special people next chapter!


	6. Dietrich and Haizea

GUESS WHAT GAIZ?! I feel like -insert foul word for poo here-! It's not pleasant. D: Anyways, I reworked this chapter so many times it's crazy. I'm still not sure if'ts exactly right but... I'm tired of it already and it's Thursday, very late in Thursday. So here it is.

* * *

The island was quite intimidating, especially because of how large Link noticed the mansion really was. It felt like it was towering over him, trying to make him run back to his boat and never come near again. But he remembered the goddess's words and hesitantly began to approach the door. The knocker was high, he barely managed to grasp it but when he did, he let gravity take over afterwards. The knocker slammed on the door louder than he thought it would have and he contemplated leaving right at that moment. His legs didn't let him.

One of the doors opened a crack and after whoever glanced through the crack saw him, it opened all the way. The one who answered was a young looking man who seemed like he really didn't want to be there.

"Are you-" Link started, but the man interrupted.

"You must be the one he said was coming." The young man said with distaste. "Get in inside and follow."

Link almost winced a bit but he managed to force his legs in. The young man closed the door behind them and then walked ahead. Link stayed a few feet behind and let his eyes wander. Everything was dusty and everything smelled old. Peeling and ripped wallpaper, faded paintings, a broken staircase, creaky floors… It was hard to believe people lived here. This kind of place seemed uninhabitable to Link. It obviously was, though, as at least two people seemed to have made it their home.

"Hurry up." The man snapped when Link had paused.

The boy rushed over quickly and kept following him, until he paused by a door. The man knocked on the door and a voice came from whoever was inside. "You may come in, Haizea." It was another male voice with an accent Link could not place.

The man called Haizea (which Link found funny since Haizea was a female name) opened the door and went inside. Link followed close behind. Haizea stopped and bowed, "The boy you expected is here." He said it in a strained respect.

Link looked over in the direction that Haizea had bowed in. There was a man sitting at a desk. His black hair was tied back so it didn't cover his face and he seemed to be focused mainly on fixing a hole on a rag doll. He didn't pay any attention to Link or Haizea for a few moments, until the hole had been sewn shut. When he had completely finished with the doll, he put it down gently, almost as if it was alive, and then pushed the sewing supplies aside. Then he had looked in the direction of the other two.

"Sorry, about that. I just had to finish that up first." He said apologetically towards Link. Then he turned to the young man. "Leave us."

Haizea bowed again and walked out, closing the door behind him. Link felt a bit unnerved.

"Please, take a seat. I don't bite." The man said with a smile, gesturing to a chair in front of the desk. Link went over hesitantly and, with the same amount of hesitance, took the seat offered to him. "My name is Dietrich. One of your goddesses told me you were coming, Link. She tells me you have to save a princess."

Link nodded, "Yes… you can talk to the goddesses?" He asked.

"On the contrary, they talk to me; and very rarely, at that. This is only the second time I have ever conversed with one." Dietrich said.

"What was the first time about?" asked Link.

"When I first arrived in this place, but that is something entirely different and unimportant to your quest. Now, tell me, what do you know of Ganon?"

The boy had a baffled look on his face and then he said, "You mean Ganondorf right?"

The man shrugged, "Same man, different names. Now answer the question."

Link thought for a moment. "Nothing really." He replied. "Just that he's from the desert and he's a magician of some kind. I don't see why I need to know anything else."

"And that's where you're wrong." Said Dietrich, smiling smugly. Link didn't see what was funny. "Have you ever heard the expression: "Keep your friends close and your enemies closer?" That's what you need to do and so far, you've nothing."

Link was bit embarrassed and a bit mad. For some reason, this man was very intimidating. He wasn't that comfortable around him, to be honest. "So… what do I need to know then?" Link asked.

"Well, like I said. First you need to know your enemy. He is from the desert and he is also a magician, you stated. What kind of magician, though, is what's really important. Ganon is a warlock, and a very skilled one from what I know. I'd say he is the equivalent to what I was where I was from, and that is nothing to sniff at."

_He thinks awfully high of himself._ Link thought, trying to suppress a sneer.

"I know what you're thinking, child." Dietrich said with a smile. Then he gave him a glare. "Watch it." Link shuddered, suddenly wishing he had taken back what he had thought. Could he read minds?

"No, I just know how they work." The man said, reverting back to a cheerful persona. "Anyways, Ganon is a powerful warlock which makes him a very powerful enemy. Now, do you know what he wants?"

He remembered Zelda's letter. "The Triforce!" He answered, glad that he had the answer for once.

Dietrich nodded. "Very good. I do not now anything about it, so you're ahead of me there. Next and last question… Do you know where he is?"

Link's face darkened again.

"I thought as much. Your princess did not want you involved, so I doubted she would have told you where she was being kept. Luckily for you, I know where they are." The man said.

"Where?!" Link found himself standing up, a sense of urgency welling up inside of him.

Dietrich seemed surprised at the sudden outburst but he didn't really seem that affected by it. "Sit down, sit down. I'm getting to it."

Link grudgingly sat back down. He didn't want to wait…

"Calmed down, yet? Good." He didn't even wait for a response. "They're in the middle of the ocean in a formidable stronghold. Very formidable. You will not be able to access it right now."

"What?! Why not?! I can take whatever gets in the way!" Link blurted out. The frustration kept growing inside of him.

"I highly doubt that." Dietrich said in that superior tone of voice again. He was really starting to piss Link off and the man knew this. He sneered at the boy, "Keep up the attitude and I won't be so willing to help, brat."

Link tensed up, a flurry of anger and fear fighting inside of him.

"Hmph. That's better." He had a very satisfied expression. "The fortress was once the home of three ocean spirits; mermaids with a rather… grim reputation. They're more well-known name is the Sirens. You know about them, yes?"

Link remembered the stories. Sirens… They were sisters and the lower halves of their bodies were that of fishes. They were like Zoras, but not quite the same. And their voices were dangerous, he remembered that the most. Supposedly, their voices could cause a man to go insane or send them into trances. He thought they were just stories.

"But they're not." Dietrich interrupted Link's thoughts. "They are very real and Ganon has done a fine job of sealing them in their individual temples; so fine a job that the balance the Sirens had kept in the ocean is now his. You are very lucky he has not found out about your rescue mission. However, I digress. You must free the Sirens from their prisons. By doing so, they will be take their powers back from Ganon and you will be allowed passage into the fortress."

Link had never really thought about this much until now. While Dietrich said all this like it was nothing, like it was _normal_, it wasn't. Everything was going fast in his mind and the gravity of everything was tumbling onto him now. "That's… that's way too big for me to do…" Link said quietly.

"Then you don't wish to save your princess?"

"I never said that!" Link burst. "I meant… I meant that I can't do it alone! That's what I meant! And I don't even know where these Sirens are supposed to be!"

"Then I'll give you a head start as to their location. The waters of the Zoras have a temple dedicated to one of the Sirens. Getting into the temple might be difficult, though. If my information is correct, the Zoras revere that temple. As for being alone… I cannot personally help you there."

"But didn't you say you were or warlock or something like that?" Link asked.

"Was. Past tense." He responded flatly. Link just stared at him crossly. "I am not from here, child. I cannot cast magic in this place, the laws of magic are different where I come from." Dietrich looked sadly at the doll he was fixing earlier. He stroked its hair. "Here… I have no power. I'm utterly useless…"

Link remained quiet, not quite sure what to think. Magic had laws? And what was with that doll?!

"Anyways, I said I could not _personally_ help you." Dietrich said after a moment of silence.

Link was puzzled.

"Haizea! I know you've been eavesdropping! Get in here!" Dietrich shouted angrily.

The door opened and a rather irritated Haizea entered, bowing and saying in strained respect, "Apologies, Master Dietrich."

"Drop the formalities you know I hate it." The ex-warlock spat.

"My apologies again, sir."

"Hmph." Dietrich turned to Link. "Haizea will join you. He will be your help."

"What?!" Haizea obviously did not expect this. "I refuse to have anything to do with this child!" he snapped.

"You have no choice! You are a slave, bound to do your master's bidding!" Dietrich spat.

Haizea was a slave? Link had thought it was simply a master-servant affiliation, not a master-slave one.

"How dare you exploit my curse?! Go burn in-" Before Haizea could finish he choked on his words. Literally. He began to hack and cough, all the while eyeing Dietrich with hate.

Link stood up to see if he could help but Dietrich merely said, "Don't. He had it coming." Link didn't want to _not_ help (though he didn't know how he could), but he figured that going against what the ex-warlock said would be a very bad idea. And looking at him now, Link was disturbed. Dietrich was _enjoying_ what he was seeing. Link could tell by the very pleased look plastered on his face.

Eventually, Haizea's hacking had gotten so bad he had slumped down to the floor, unconscious. Dietrich sighed, almost as if sad that his entertainment had ended so soon, then stood up and walked over to where his sleeping slave was. He dragged him to the wall and sat Haizea up against it.

"He goes into convulsions every time he disrespects me." Dietrich explained to Link simply.

The boy was horrified. "Why?"

"Do not let that pretty face fool you, Haizea is older than he looks." Dietrich said, "Long before I came to this place, he was here. Apparently, you're goddesses did not take much of a liking to him. They cast three curses on him. Servitude and respect."

There was a pause for a moment and then Link asked, "But didn't you say there were three?"

Dietrich had on a poker face. Link couldn't read him. "Abstinence." He finally said.

"What?" the boy said blankly.

"That is the third curse."

"What's that?"

Dietrich put a hand on hand on his forehead, as if deep in thought. Finally, he just looked down at Link, still with the poker face and said, "You're too young."

Link scowled but knew he would get no more from the ex-warlock. "So what did his fit have to do with his curses?" He asked.

"Every time Haizea openly and vocally disrespects his current master, he goes into a choking frenzy or has a seizure. Then he proceeds to lose a part of his memory. That is the curse of respect…" Dietrich mused for a moment before asking no one in particular, "I wonder what he lost this time?"

"And servitude… it makes him a slave." Link did not ask it. He knew it was true.

"Yes. And I relinquish my ownership to you." Dietrich said as if it was nothing.

"W-what?!" Link stuttered.

"Well, I certainly never wanted him." Dietrich said plainly, "It was a stroke of bad luck that brought him to me and it is a stroke of good luck that is taking him away. Good riddance, I say."

"B-but I don't want a…"

"A slave?" The ex-warlock finished for him. Seeing the depressed look on Link's face, he scoffed and said, "Call him a servant, call him a dog, call him a potted plant-whatever makes you happy."

Link frowned… this certainly wasn't what he expected when he came here.

"It is not as bad as you think." Dietrich was back to speaking without expression. "He can be useful sometimes. He is a good magician in his own right, but because of his mass amounts of memory loss, he might not remember too much. He was the one who rid the surrounding area of any boats I did not want passing by, though. There will be some more fool explorers coming here but… I am just glad to be rid of him."

Link looked up at the man. He seemed to be rather content but something in his eyes… The boy knew that deep down he was a little sad, whether he wanted to admit it or not.

* * *

Well, now, my little Dietrich is as nice as ever -swoons-... Hehe, Dietrich is actually an OC that wasn't made specifically for this fanfic. He's actually a character from one of my original works. He's not a nice man, as you've probably picked up by now. However, because of his rather... sadistic nature he's also a bit of a lonely guy. Something he's gotten used to, for the most part. As for Haizea... I can't say anything about him. Well, I can I just won't.


	7. The Third Curse

This was a totally forced chapter. I haven't been in the right mood to write this, but dammit it's not going to be like before where I'd go months without updating. I refuse to keep doing that! So I forced myself and wrote. I don't know how good it is and it's short but oh well... So yeah, I might have a job soon. I won't let it hinder the fanfic, I just hope I actually get it. I need money. T.T

Anyways, we get to learn what was meant by abstinence in the last chapter.

* * *

"You don't possibly expect to fit both of us in this boat, do you?" Haizea said. He was still bitter about his sudden change of ownership.

"I didn't think I'd have to take anyone around with me." Link said back. He was just as enthusiastic about the whole situation as Haizea was.

"Now, now children, try to get along." Dietrich said as if he was mother scolding her children. He seemed to be enjoying the show, overall. "You're probably going to b around each other for a while so I suggest you start getting over your differences now."

"Easy for you to say, old man." Haizea spat, putting an emphasis on "old man" which caused Dietrich to flinch slightly. "But I suppose if I lived with you for ten years I can put up with this-" he cut himself off, thinking over his wording carefully, "-this child." He finished. The strain he used which he once addressed Dietrich with had transferred over to addressing Link.

"If you're going to call anyone old it might as well be yourself." Dietrich contorted, causing Haizea to flinch just as badly as the ex-warlock had earlier. Dietrich then looked to Link. "The Zoras are farther south, but a general direction will not get you there. I found this while looking around the mansion for the first time. I have no use for it so you take it."

He then handed Link a folded up paper, possibly even parchment since it was so thick. When Link opened the many folds, he found it was a map. It was a very large map, containing the land of Hyrule as well as the sea. When he looked at this map, Link realized that he never thought about how big this world really was and this map was just a part of it.

"Stop gawking at it and let's go." Haizea finally said. "It'll still take a while to get there. We'll be lucky if we get to the Zora's Domain by nightfall."

"Oh, yeah…" Link said, suddenly snapping back to reality. "Thanks Mr. Dietrich."

Dietrich merely nodded and then began to walk back. Link was already in the boat, getting the sail ready when Haizea suddenly called out to the ex-sorcerer. "I never finished what I was going to tell you earlier, old man!" Dietrich glanced at his former-slave, a look on his face saying he knew what to expect and he really didn't care.

"I hope you go burn in Hell." Haizea spat.

The man smiled and nodded. "I know I will, but what about you Haizea?" Then he continued on his way, leaving Haizea dumbstruck and angry.

"… always has the last word…" Was all Link could make out from his muttering. The man then plopped himself inside the boat, trying to get as comfortable as he could. "Whenever you're ready, pips-child."

Link really hated being called a child by this guy. In fact, Link could say he really didn't like Haizea at all. "Whenever the wind is ready. It's not going our way."

"Making me work already… Ah the story of my life." Haizea said regretfully. He swung his wrist and the wind followed it. The boat still didn't move, however, as it was still partially beached. "Better go out and push now, boy."

Link scowled and then he found himself grinning. "Better idea. _You_ go out and push."

Haizea glared, but he didn't say anything. He just exited the boat and pushed it, then quickly scrambled to get back on when the sails caught the wind. He muttered something about water in his boots and the boat creaked along, speeding up with the wind. As he emptied his boots of their floods, he glared at Link again. "I take it that old man over there told you everything about me."

"Just about." Link said with satisfaction. Then he remembered the one thing Dietrich _didn't_ tell him about. "Except he didn't tell me what abstinence meant."

Haizea smiled slightly as if it was comical, seeming be off somewhere in a different world. "Abstinence… By far the worst curse the goddesses could ever give me." He said.

"Okay… what does it mean?" Link asked. He was trying to sound like he wasn't totally desperate to find out, but it wasn't really working.

"Sex." Haizea said plainly as he put his boots back on.

Link felt the blood rush to his face. "S-se-s-" He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Sex. Say it with me, now: S-E-X, sex." Haizea said. "Of course, abstinence can mean any number of things, but in my case it's sex. I can't have it. The goddesses thought my promiscuity was a problem, so they gave me a curse to abstain from sex. Now if any woman even so much as brushes against me, I get a shock through my system."

Link was still taken aback by the sex comment. He knew what it was, but to a ten year-old boy it could be taken in two ways: perversely or with abject horror. Link was the latter case.

"What's wrong, you look as if I've said something offensive." Haizea said.

"Nothing, nothing… Just stay quiet for a while…" Link mumbled.

The man shrugged, "As you wish."

And it was quiet for a long time. The sun began to set and the sky turned deep shades of orange and purple as the darkness crept on them. On the horizon a shape could seen rising from the water, no doubt the Zora's Domain. Link had hoped they would arrive before it turned dark, but it didn't seem to be so. The cloud cover wasn't helping either. It had gotten very cloudy on the way. The clouds hadn't gone and chances are they'd block most of the light from the stars and moon. That shape and the horizon would just blend in with the darkness of sea. Link decided he might as well just check the map. They could keep going if they were in the right direction, but it was already getting dark enough that he couldn't see map.

Link groaned, thinking they'd have to stop until daybreak, but then a light appeared allowing him to make out the writing and shapes on the map. It flickered in the wind and then Link saw that the light came from Haizea's side of the boat. His thumb had a little flame on the tip, like a match.

"Can you see the map fine?" he asked. Link nodded, a little confused. Haizea noticed and responded by merely saying, "I don't like boats. I'd hate to end up dying on one at night."


	8. The Zora King

I'm sad because I don' think I go the job... Sexist bastards. Anyways, I wrote this fueled on Gatorade and Flogging Molly, so it should be better than the last chapter. God, I hope it is. If not... blame school work. I seriously hate high school. And I steill have one more effin year to go. Geh! GEH I SAY! Well, see y'all next week.

* * *

"This is your fault…" Link muttered from behind the bars of a prison. He was crouched down, hugging his knees and obviously not in a very good mood. Haizea sat on the opposite side of the cell, actually seeming not bothered by their current circumstances.

"I'll admit that some of the fault is mine, but not all of it." He said. "I do understand why they threw us in here. We only crashed into their coral structure in the middle of night, plus you were carrying a sword. Not suspicious at all."

Link grumbled angrily, "You don't need to be sarcastic about it."

"Apologies, Master Link." Haizea said, greatly exaggerating the title of "master." Link could understand why Dietrich hated the formalities, now.

"Well, whatever… we're not going to be able to get the Siren at this rate…"

"I could always…" Haizea didn't continue, merely made a gesture to the bars that link could only assume meant "I can blast our way out of here."

"I don't think that's a good idea. Maybe we should wait until one of the guards comes by and we can tell them what's going on."

The slave merely snorted and said, "They're probably going to leave us to rot, if anything. I wouldn't get my hopes up."

It was quiet for a bit. It was probably only a few minutes but it felt like days. Still, the quiet was almost deafening, though occasionally the scuttling of a literal sea rat could be heard. Link sighed, surprised at how loud it sounded with all the silence. But at the sigh, he realized how tired he really was. He knew sleep of any kind wouldn't come easily in his current situation, though.

"So… what's with the name?" Link asked Haizea in an attempt to break the silence.

"Name?" Haizea asked back, seeming rather bored.

"Haizea, that's a girls' name. Why's it stuck on you?"

The slave shot an angry glare at Link and then turned his glance away again. "When a person is enslaved, they don't usually keep their real names. Haizea is a slave name, given to me solely for the purpose of degrading me." He growled.

"So what's your real name?"

Haizea didn't look at Link but his expression was still bitter and angry. Then it toned down a bit to a depressed kind of angry. "If I remembered, I wouldn't be a slave…" He muttered. "Names hold power. If you take someone's name from them, they become like me…"

Wow, harsh. Link thought. The goddesses must not have liked Haizea very much to take everything from him. He had to wonder, what exactly could he have done to enrage the goddesses so? He doubted that Haizea even remembered. What a miserable life…

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the flappy, somewhat sticky steps of a Zora. It was also accompanied by the sound of a light armor clapping against skin and the jingling of keys. A jail guard. Link almost had a mind to say "I told you so." But he thought now wasn't quite the right time. The guard came into view and stopped in front of the cell door. The large and strange Zora armor intimidated Link, but he tried not to let it show. The guard took out a ring of keys and inserted one into the lock and opened the door.

"Follow me," He said, "But don't try anything funny."

Haizea was the first to stand but Link quickly scrambled up afterwards. They followed the Zora, confusion evident on Link's face. The boy was surprised that none of this fazed Haizea at all, and if it did he was hiding it well.

"Um… Where are we going?" Link finally asked. He was afraid of the answer.

"The King wishes to see the ones who have trespassed on the Zora's Domain so violently." The guard said, making sure not to hide any hints of disgust in his voice.

They followed the guard for what felt an eternity, while at the same time receiving confused and frightened looks from other Zoras they passed. The more they kept moving, the more Link felt that nothing good was going to happen. There was a lot of water in this place… they could easily be taken of.

"Don't worry, it can't be that bad." Haizea said, sensing Link's oncoming panic, no doubt.

"How do you know?" Link asked, trying to conceal any sign of anxiousness. It didn't work.

"Because if it was that bad, they wouldn't be letting us follow so freely. Isn't that right, guard?" Haizea said with a satisfied look on his face.

The guard grumbled something that Link couldn't hear but he didn't object to it. It made him feel a little better, but it didn't completely rid him of the nervous feeling. He felt like he wanted to vomit, actually.

The rest of the walk seemed like a daze after the initial feeling of nausea. The next thing he knew Haizea was hissing at him to be at attention. He finally got a grip on reality and looked around to see they were in a very regal looking room. Right in front of him was a very regal looking Zora male, sitting next to him was a very regal looking Zora female. All this regality… He was embarrassed. Was he that dazed in front of the Zora king and queen? Sure, he was familiar with the King of Hyrule, but this was an entirely different situation because he was sure he didn't know the Zora monarchy.

The king wasted no time. "Why have you two trespassed on Zora territory?" He said it sternly. He was not a man for games.

Link knew it was time to put up his "proper" face. While he was friends with Zelda and could speak to her casually (most of the time), he would never act that way towards the king. So, since he was dealing with another king the same rules should apply, right?

"Your Highness, we didn't mean to trespass. We were actually coming here to see if we could go into the Temple of the Siren." Link said in his best respectful voice.

He could see a flare go up in the Zora king's eyes. Even the Zora queen seemed a little taken aback. "And what makes you, an outsider, think that you could just waltz in there!? What business do you have at the Temple?!"

Link tried not to wince. "Um, just…" Dietrich ended up being right; the Temple was a touchy subject among the Zoras. He didn't know whether or not to tell the truth. Would they believe him if he told the truth? He felt the glares of all the Zoras around him and he felt himself shaking. He'd never been in the spotlight like this.

Haizea stepped in. "The princess of Hyrule was taken. By going to the Temple of the Siren, the boy might be able to find something to help him rescue the princess. We mean no harm, we are allies." It was the truth. Blunt and vague, but the truth.

The king tensed up but the hostility was lowered a little. His queen rested her hand on his arm, looking at him with worried eyes. "Hyrule has not asked for aid from our people for decades… How can I be sure what you speak is the truth?"

Haizea remained silent and expressionless. He was not going to step in again. Link thought carefully about what to say, trying to ignore all the eyes on him.

"We cant." He said. "We can't prove it but…" Link fell on his knees, in a gesture of respect to the royalty in front of him (something he probably should have done before, he thought). "Please, please! Just please believe us when we say that we don't mean any harm! I just want to save Zelda!"

He didn't look up, but he heard the murmurs from the Zoras. He could also feel Haizea rolling his eyes at him. He stayed down for a moment, until Haizea grabbed Link by the arm and pulled him up.

"Don't embarrass yourself." He hissed in a voice that no one but Link could hear.

There were a few more moments of silence, with mumbles and whispers breaking them every few seconds. The king seemed to be consulting his queen on the matter, and then he turned to face the pair.

"We will think on your request to enter the Temple of the Siren. You are welcome to stay here until we come to a decision." He said.

Link was about to burst out, "But we can't wait!" but Haizea grabbed his arm again and shook his head, his face serious. The slave then turned to face the king, "We will wait as long as it takes, Your Highness, for your answer. We only ask that we do not receive our prior accommodations."

The king nodded. "It will be done."

And the next thing Link knew, they were being escorted by a couple of guards to the guest quarters of the coral castle.


	9. Warnings

Oh my, sorry. I almost forgot to update. Been so busy lately. I've been appointed Vice President of a club at my school as well as editor for the magazine of the school. Lots of school functions going on as well as some familial things. So busy. So this a short chapter. We'll be getting down to the real business next week.

* * *

Link had gotten his own room and it was far bigger than he thought it would be, or rather, far bigger than he was used to. His room back at his home on the beach was just a small little square, fitting only a bed and the basic necessities. This room was probably about the size of his little cottage by the sea, decorated in pale blues with traditional Zora décor (or at least what he assumed was traditional Zora décor).

Now that he really thought about it, though, it seemed too easy. For the king just to accept his explanation… It was too simple. Especially since the Temple of the Siren was supposed to be a sacred place. Shouldn't they have put of more of a defense. Wouldn't someone normally object to an outsider just barging in like that and pretty much demand entry?

Deciding to throw all the questions behind, he took off his boots and cap and jumped onto the bed. It was remarkably comfy and he was remarkably tired. If he really had to think so hard it might as well have been on a refreshed head. He closed his eyes and he dreamt of that dark place again. The pillar of light came again, and Farore appeared.

"Greetings again, dear child." She said in her beautifully gentle voice.

Link tried to put together a sentence but all that came out was "Guh." She merely smiled at the sound. He didn't think he could ever get used to speaking with goddesses.

"It seems my sister and I were correct to choose the wizard as an informant. I am glad you are on the right track." She said. Her smile then faded. "However, I am worried you may stray from that track."

"Stray from the track? What do you mean?" Link asked, finding his voice.

"Haizea." She said. Her expression was solemn, her voice filled with disdain.

"But he was supposed to come with me right?" Link asked.

"Yes… But I wish to warn you of him."

"Why?"

"You may hold command over him, but not complete command. He is a predator. He stalks his prey and circles them until he sees a chance to strike. When he decides to strike, it will be devastating. Do not trust him. Never trust him. If it is ever a choice between his life or yours, you must take the noble course of action and save yourself." She said.

Link contained a rather disgusted and surprised expression. Not that he would give his life for that jerk but still. The goddesses were supposed to be filled with pure intentions, right? "No offense but that doesn't sound very noble… at all." He said.

"He is not worth it."

Link held the expression again and after a moment of brief silence he asked, "What did he do that made you three so angry?"

Her expression remained solemn. "He is a monster." And then she began to fade. "It is time to wake up, child. The Zoras await you."

He felt a splash of cold water on his face. He jumped and gave a squeal. It was still dark, so he couldn't tell where he was. He could make out the silhouettes of three Zoras.

"There's more to your story than you claim. Speak." He recognized the voice of the king.

Link didn't say anything; he just tried to peer in the darkness to get a better look.

"Insolent child! When the king asks you a question, you answer it immediately!" Said one of the other Zoras. Link could see the Zora shaking in anger.

"Calm yourself, Kekoa." Said the other Zora, sounding like an older man. "Answer the king, young one."

"Um… well, what do you want to know… specifically, I mean." Link said.

"If it was simply to rescue your princess, you wouldn't need to go to the Temple, yet you say you have to. Why?" The older Zora guard said.

Link wondered if it was okay to tell them everything. He had to think quickly, because even though he was a child, he was pretty sure that they wouldn't hold that against him. He also didn't see why not to tell them. They revered the Sirens after all. So he told them everything Dietrich told him and the first dream that the goddess appeared in. When he finished the three Zoras remained quiet. His eyes had adjusted to the light better so he saw the two guards turned towards the other. The king merely turned, his back facing Link.

After what seemed like an eternal silence the king, his back still facing the child, finally said, "The Sirens, queens of our ocean, are in grave danger… The goddesses have chosen you, a mere child, to save them, along with your princess, from an evil man who seeks to gain ultimate power. Really, this sounds like a childish fantasy, something out of a storybook… However, for you to come all the way here, that would be taking your lie too far…" Another silence. "You and your companion may enter the Temple whenever you feel ready. I am sorry to have disturbed you." The king lifted a hand and the guards helped Link up. That's when he thought of something.

"Hey, wait one minute!" He said, quickly adding a "Your Highness" when he caught himself. The guards immediately stepped in front of the king, who gestured for them to stand down.

"Yes?" the regal Zora responded.

"What didn't you interrogate Haizea?!"

The king blinked for a moment, surprise evident on his face. "We did." He said. "He told us to speak to you."

After that, Link could only keep remembering the goddess's warning.


	10. The Zora Temple

Hmm, hmm... Next chapter. No comment really.

* * *

The rest of Link's night was filled with a fitful, dreamless sleep. For that reason, he woke up on the wrong side of the bed. When he went out to see if breakfast was available, he was in a gloomy and irritated silence. He knew enough about castle to know that he probably had to eat with the servants unless he was specifically told otherwise. So he went to the kitchen area to see a crowd of servants and maids and other workers getting their breakfast.

Link took a plate of the strange Zora breakfast and found a table to sit at. His bad mood was furthered when he saw Haizea, who seemed to be quite content as he took the seat next to the boy.

"An eventful night, eh?" He said to Link a little too happily.

Link grumbled something incoherent. He wanted to tell him off so badly, but he knew it wouldn't get him anywhere. He just pushed around the strange looking food in front of him with a fork. To be honest, he wasn't really hungry. He was in too bad of a mood to be hungry.

"You'd better eat something if you're going in that Temple today." Haizea said. There could have been a hint of concern in the way it was said, or just all around bossiness.

"_We're_ going to the Temple later." Link corrected.

Haizea winced. "Why does it have to be 'we' and not 'you?'?" He said bitterly.

"Because I say so." Link snapped, while shooting a harsh glare at the man.

The slave put on a face but didn't say anything and continued not to say anything for a long time.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" Link asked, a bit of irritation in his voice.

"No. The food looks… strange, to say the least. I don't eat much, anyways." Haizea stated simply, while at the same time his gaze followed a Zora girl with nice curves.

"You're disgusting." Link said, trying to focus on eating again.

"Call it what you will, one day you'll be doing the same thing." Haizea smirked.

"Whatever." Link muttered. He got up and left, leaving his plate behind.

In an attempt to cool his temper, he took to walking around the castle. Well, as much of the castle that was walkable. Some areas were Zora access only-being that the only way to get through them was swimming through waterways. Link wasn't a bad swimmer, but he wasn't going to chance anything. He just kept to the dry areas, trying to think of nothing. That way nothing would get on his nerves. Somehow, nothing did get on his nerves and his mood, while not getting worse, did not get any better either.

He managed to find himself in the main hall of the castle, where a waterfall that was an actual part of the structure was. It was roaring away and Link merely sat by the wall. The dull roar of the falling water was actually dulling his horrible mood. So he just sat and observed. He noticed that, aside from being fish people, the way of life in a Zora castle wasn't that different from in Hyrule Castle. He could make out the linen maids and kitchen maids scurrying about, the visiting lords and ladies, regular visitors. Sure the dress was way different but he could tell from their actions, and it reminded him a bit of his home.

But was Hyrule really home if Zelda wasn't there? No, it wouldn't be, he knew that. And that's why he was there in the first place! He was doing all this so he could save Zelda! Sure, she may not have wanted him to, but he was going to do everything he could! He couldn't just stand around being angry, that wasn't going to get him anywhere! And he may not have liked his current company but he'd have to deal with it. If it meant saving Zelda, he'd do anything.

"Oh, thinking about your princess?" It was Haizea. Link jumped. He was just leaning against the wall by the boy but he hadn't even noticed that he was there. "Maybe when you're both of age you can court her." The slave smirked.

Link felt a hot rush of blood in his face. "It's not… It's not like that! She's my friend!" He said angrily.

Haizea shrugged. "If you say so. I can't speak out against it. But, believe or not, I didn't come to annoy you. I believe it's time for us to venture into the Siren's little nest. They're opening the gates as we speak." He said.

Link shot him a dirty look but stood up. His bad mood came back. "Lead the way. I never asked where it was." He said with anger touching his words.

Haizea smiled, but it wasn't a nice one. It was a smile that hid a deep, deep amount of contempt. "Of course, young master." He said mockingly.

The way to the entrance to the Temple was quiet. The two didn't speak another word but the aura of pure disgust and dislike was evident and thick in the air. People they passed by could even feel it, evident from the way they shuddered or gave them strange looks. Even the coral around them seemed to shudder. That took a little bit of the anger away from Link as he realized the coral was just as much a living thing as the people who walked around the structure.

The way to the Temple led outside of the castle and to a winding strip of land that led to a gatepost. Link immediately noticed that Haizea grew uneasy at the site of the gatepost, but didn't say anything. He really didn't care if Haizea wasn't feeling up to their little adventure now. Link also noticed that the gatepost, and the structure behind it which he assumed was the Temple, was different. Unlike the castle, it wasn't coral. It was rock. It was altered manually, so it looked like a gatepost and temple, but it was from rock that had already been there. The rock itself also looked different, almost with a metallic gleam to it.

In front of the gatepost was the queen, looking regal as always. Guards stood near her, one of them holding some sort of case in his hands. The two paused in front of her; Link offered a small bow, the queen nodded in acknowledgement. Haizea didn't even so much as glance at her, which Link found quite strange. While they had only been there a day, Haizea was not hesitant to glance at any woman who had passed by. Instead, his eyes were focused on the gatepost and he seemed quite unnerved. The queen didn't regard him in any way.

"The Temple is large and it will be easy to get lost in." She started. Her voice fit her appearance perfectly: regal. She gestured to the guard holding the case and he brought it to her. She opened it up and took out a pair of rather flabby-looking, fish-scaled things. "Some of the Temple is also submerged beneath the water and you humans cannot hold your breath for very long. These are gills that you put around the neck. While they are not really real gills, they will allow to remain underwater for a much longer than time than you normally could."

Link took the gill handed to him. It was flabby and squishy. He really didn't like the idea of putting that thing around his neck. He put it on, holding back the expression of disgust as to not offend the queen for her gift. Shuddering a bit as some sort of slimy film went down his back after the gills were placed, he glanced at Haizea, hoping he would see a similar reaction. He didn't. The slave merely took the gills and placed them around his neck without a problem, eyes still focused on the metallic rock structures. He finally spoke, "What's your Temple made of?"

The queen looked strangely at Haizea, as if the question was said in a different language. "It is made of rock. The rock itself is brimming with iron ore, however. We have no use for iron, so we leave the rock as it is. Is something troubling you?"

He gritted his teeth and mumbled something. Link could only catch, "I don't like…"

He didn't like? He didn't like what, exactly?

Having an idea what he didn't like, Link pretended that the harness on his sword strap broke. The sword fell, and slipped a little bit out of its scabbard. The guards around the queen immediately stepped in front of her, but Link paid no attention to them. He looked Haizea, who had jumped a little and went a few steps back at the sight of the sword. He eyed it almost as if it was evil. He then hid that glance of fear quickly, bent down and pushed the sword back into its scabbard, and handed it hilt-first to Link. "You should make sure the strap is tied properly." He said, voice monotone.

Link took the sword, apologized to the queen for the mishap and tied the strap back, placing his sword back behind his shoulder. He tried not to smile. Metal. Haizea didn't seem to like metal. The only reason he hadn't ever reacted to the sword before was because it was always in the sheath and his shield was really just wood.

Satisfied in his discovery, he walked proudly towards the entrance of the Temple. Haizea hesitantly followed. The guards saluted them as they walked.

The Temple started off as just a hallway. A long, dark, creepy hallway. There was light at the end of the hall, which disturbed Link a little. Had they somehow died within going into five steps of the Temple? The thought was eased out of his mind when he was able to make out a large chamber. They went through the hall and into the circular chamber. The light came from the ceiling, or rather lack thereof. There was no ceiling, just the sky. He could hear gulls squawking overhead.

"Strange construction…" Haizea said, still glancing around furtively.

"Yeah…" Link said, "I guess we'll go to that big door." He looked straight ahead to a large door. It looked strange, but he didn't know quite why. When they were within two feet of the door he realized why.

There was a lock. A large lock. It was probably about half Link's full body height with three keyholes in it. Link cussed and then stomped in a circle.

"Such a foul mouth." Haizea commented, seeming a bit more relaxed now. He was still rattled, however, that much was evident. "We have one now, we just need to find the other two."

"What are you talking about? We don't have any of the keys!" Link snapped.

Haizea scoffed and then pointed near the foot of the large door. In the crack between the floor and the floor, half of a key was sticking out teeth-first. Link picked up the key and looked at the lock. They went together. Link tried to hide his embarrassment. He stuffed the key in his pocket and then looked around.

There were two doors. Not on the same scale as the one they stood before now, but no doubt that's where the others keys were.

"I'll take the one on the left." Haizea said. He started towards it but-

"Wait. No." Link said.

Haizea turned, confusion evident on his face. "Why not? It's faster."

"I don't trust you." He said it plainly.

"That's very smart of you, but you can trust me in this case. I'll get the key and bring it straight to you. I'd like to leave this place as quickly as possible." It was said very… businesslike. Link still didn't trust him.

"I order you to do that." Link said.

Haizea rolled his eyes and then started to make towards the left door again. "Oh, and you can't leave until I leave, either!" Link added.

"I get it, I get it. I won't!" Haizea shouted without stopping.

Link scowled in his head and headed toward the right door. Ordered or not, Link _still_ didn't trust him.

With a bit of effort, he managed to pry the door open and enter the room. He looked around. Unlike the last room, this one had a ceiling with two columns holding it up. The room was dark, lit only by the open door behind him. Then, the door shut abruptly; metal bars shot up around the door before he could even turn to rush out. There were flashes of lights and he looked back toward the room. The two columns had torches on them illuminating the room, dimly, but there was light. Right in between the columns, there was a puff of smoke, which dissipated just as quickly as it had come. Standing where the smoke had appeared was something, almost looked like a knight in dark armor.

A Dark Nut.

Link cussed.

* * *

This first temple should maybe last... around maybe two or three more chapters, not including this one. Already working on them, so you might get an early chapter.


	11. Into the Water

Three words: being sick _blows_. It's just a cold but goddammit does it really suck. Worst part is, it's happening at the _beginning_ of summer vacation. Life just isn't fair sometimes.

* * *

The armor-clad monster charged at him, swinging its broad heavy sword. Link didn't have time to draw his sword or shield, but he managed to roll away. The hairs falling to the floor showed him just how much of a close call it was. He had heard stories about Dark Nuts, none of them were good. All that armor protected them from just about any attack. He couldn't believe he was thinking it, but right now he really could have used Haizea's help. He was looking forward to blowing something up; this could've been the perfect time.

His roll took him a bit of a distance from the Nut, who didn't seem sure where Link had gone. Thankful that the creature wasn't very bright, he drew out his sword and had his shield at the ready. He had no idea how he was going to do this, but he had to fight it. Everything had a weakness, and just because the stories said the Dark Nuts had no weaknesses didn't mean they were true. After all, the stories had to come from somewhere, right? The monster heard the singing of the sword as it came from its sheath. It turned and charged with unusual quickness, especially for its size. It lunged at Link and, once again, he rolled behind it.

The ritual continued as such. The movements were fast, but at the time, everything felt so slow. Link couldn't find any weaknesses in the armor and he was getting very worn out, very fast. He needed to find something or he would be sliced, diced, and fed to the dogs.

He managed to roll through the monster's legs, this roll being more sluggish than the others but enough to avoid the Dark Nut's attack. It was as he was rolling, however, that he noticed something. The Nut's cape flew out with Link, since the tip of his sword snagged at the material. The boy saw that the monster had no armor on its back. Before the thing could turn around and throw itself at Link, he slashed at its back. It howled in fury and once again turned with its unnatural speed at him. Link rolled away again and slashed again. It was getting angry, but Link saw it was working. The creature's strange dark blood had stained itself on his sword and on the floor. It seemed more angry than injured, but if Link could hold it off just until it fell over from blood loss, that was good enough.

Roll, slash, move, roll, slash, and it went on for a little bit longer. The wound was obviously getting worse and it still hadn't died or shown any sign of even going unconscious anytime soon. Link's blood was pumping furiously through his system, sweat all over him, his breathing hard. He was reaching his limit, he couldn't go on any longer.

The monster finally managed to slam Link against a wall with its shield. He dropped his own shield as well as his sword. The monster roared and lunged at Link again. It shut his eyes, thinking of how he had just failed Zelda. But nothing happened. In place of the creature's yelling came the clang of a large blade falling on the floor, then the clanging and banging of an armor covered body falling to the floor.

Link opened one eye to see the Dark Nut sprawled out on the floor, sword lying near its hand. The deep wounds on its back were oozing out the strange blood. It was dead and he had survived. He sighed in relief.

Then the floor began to shake and crumble beneath him. Water was coming in through the forming cracks. He panicked and rushed over to his sword and shield, but the floor suddenly opened up and a rush of water from below came crashing in the room.

He was dead. He really was going to die this time. He couldn't save Zelda and he was in for what he had heard was the most miserable death one could ever suffer: drowning. Everything Farore told him he could do was a lie. The goddesses were probably laughing at him right now. But as the water flooded the room and came over his face, he realized something. He was breathing just fine. And he remembered the gills that the queen of the Zoras had given him. He opened his eyes and adjusted them to the sting of the water. He saw bubbles creeping next to his face to the top of the now flooded room. He felt the gills at his neck working and tickling him and he was so, so very glad that he had not died.

The fact that his sword was now sinking, however, didn't give him much time to celebrate the fact that he hadn't drowned. He scrambled through the water as fast as he could but the metal sunk faster. Luckily, it wasn't endless abyss. There was a floor, and the sword gently clanked at the bottom. After putting the sword back into its sheath, as quickly as he could in the water, he glanced around for the shield. Splinters of wood were floating around the top of the room; what was left of his shield. He grimaced but he figured what was done was done, and that shield was definitely done.

He sighed in his mind, still nervous about actually opening his mouth and letting water in, and looked around as he put the sword on his back. In this underwater room, there was a hallway. Or rather, what would have been a hallway if there wasn't all this water. He swam through it as best he could. Despite being raised by the sea and boating ever since he was a baby, he actually wasn't that good of a swimmer. He kept on swimming through to the end of the hall, reaching a hole in the wall. It never occurred to the boy, though, why there was a hole in the wall.

He swam through the hole into the next submerged room. That's all it was. A room filled water. There were some chunks of rock around the room, no doubt from that hole in the wall. What was he supposed to do now? He scowled and ended up floating to the top of the room. His head bumped against the top of the room and he glared up at the ceiling. He brightened up when he saw something that looked like a lever. Well, he had hoped it was a switch and he was glad that his head had not hit that instead. Trudging his way around to the other side of the lever, he pulled at it.

It was being stubborn.

He pulled and yanked, even tried to give his best kick in the water (which didn't work because of the lack of momentum). He stopped to catch his breath, in a manner of speaking, and stared at the lever again. How was he going to move that thing? Determination stirring, he pushed again with all his might. Slowly but surely, it began to move with a hideous screeching sound. It obviously hadn't been moved in a very long time. The lever managed to snap into its place in the opposite direction and nothing happened. Again. Link was feeling a bit frustrated and was about to just give up and head back when there was small sucking sound. He looked around to follow the sound and managed to find it. It was a metal grate on the floor of the room, mostly obscured by rock, and it was vacuuming the water.

He sunk down to the grate, pushing off the rock. Link didn't understand why it happened, but he was glad things got lighter in the water. The rock gave him no trouble at all, and the vacuum of the grate pulled harder now. It was a bit of a shock to the boy; his boot almost got sucked in, but he managed to clumsily swim away just before his boot became victim to the sucking grate.

The water level lowered and lowered and finally all the water mostly sucked by the gate. He was cold now that he was left wet in the open air, but that was nice. The air part was nice, the cold part. The breathing water thing made him feel very uncomfortable but it did come in handy.

Then, one of the walls started dripping water from cracks in the metallic rock. Dripping went to sputtering, which moved on to spewing. The rock finally cracked and the wall came tumbling. Link jumped back a little, remembering the first room and the shock of the water coming over the room. Luckily, that didn't happen again. The water just tumbled over the broken rocks and floor, getting sucked into the grate in the corner of the room. The next room, where the water had burst forth from, wasn't wholly submerged beneath water, he had guessed. He didn't particularly mind.

He climbed over the remains of the wall and gave a sigh of relief. There was a chest in the next room, and a staircase. As he got near the chest, he noticed he felt sore. All that swimming was really hitting him. The battle with the Dar Nut earlier probably hadn't helped either. Overall, he was just remarkably tired. What had been going on in the past few hours was more than what he normally did in a week, no doubts about that. He just slumped on to the chest, happy that all he had to do now was get that key, meet up with Haizea, open that door, and free a Siren. Simple as that.

He opened up the chest. It was mostly empty except for a key, matching the one in his pocket, in the corner of it. He smiled weakly at it, picked it up, and stuffed it into his pocket with the other key. He continued to slump on over to the stairs. Trying to ignore the amount of steps, he just went on thinking about how near he was to the end of this place. In roughly about ten minutes, he'd be out of here.


	12. The Crystal and the Dragon

Um okay, so a few minutes late... Sorry. I completely forgot. So... it's summer vacation now so... I should have some time. As for now, I just need sleep.

Short chapter.

* * *

The spiral staircase that had opened up made him somewhat dizzy until he slammed into a wall. He groaned, thinking it was just a dead end when the wall started moving, slowly, but it was moving toward the side. He managed to slide out when there was enough room, not letting the moving wall finish moving. He looked back to see tat the moving wall was actually a statue in the beginning hallway of the Temple, near the main chamber. He looked up towards the heavens and thanked the goddesses that he was so close now.

He ran, well tried to, to where the large door was. On the way he noticed splotches of watery red leading up to where the door was. Something was nagging at the back of his head but his head didn't feel like thinking.

At the door, he saw Haizea was already there, sitting near the giant door and just as soaking wet as he was. The trail of red led to him.

"It's about time you came back." Haizea spat. He was holding his bleeding side and looked like he wanted to scream.

"W-what happened?" Link stuttered. When the Dark Nut bled, it didn't really take that much of an effect on him. But seeing Haizea bleed… it was different.

The man staggered up, still clutching his side and gritting his teeth. "It's nothing. Did you get the other key?" He asked.

Link nodded and fumbled for the other two keys. He held them out, still eyeing the wound that Haizea held on to so tightly.

"It's fine!" Haizea snapped. "Just a scratch and it's not your problem!" He snatched the keys, took out the one he had fought for, and then jammed them into their keyholes. As he did so, he finally let go of his wound. Link tried not to wince as he finally saw what it looked like. After being around a veteran like his grandfather and training with soldiers for pretty much his whole life, he knew a bad wound when he saw one. It was a deep gash that wouldn't heal easily. Something like that would need stitches, and it would still probably be broken open easily. Haizea shouldn't have been standing… or doing anything at all really. "Stand back." He said, breaking Link's attention off from the nasty sight.

Link took a few steps back. Haizea let go of the lock and staggered back as quickly as he could. The giant lock fell with a loud clang on the floor, narrowly missing both of their feet. Link walked around the giant lock and towards the door, Haizea stumbling behind him.

"Maybe you should stay here." Link said, looking at the wound which Haizea now clutched again.

"No." Haizea's strained voice answered.

"I order you to stay here." Link said.

Haizea gave him a foul look and scowled. "That was a very bad move." He said curtly as he dropped himself on the floor. Link rolled his eyes and went through the door, still feeling the slave's icy glare on his back but knowing it was for the man's own good… what little good there was in him, at least. The door opened up to a hallway with its ceiling still intact. This hall way was not as long as the one at the entrance and Link thanked the goddesses for that. He could see the end of the hall quite clearly walked calmly towards it. He found a little skip in step, telling him that maybe he wasn't as tired as he had thought he had been. After a few skips, he realized that it was nothing more than a short burst of energy as he had begun to pant.

He entered a large, circular room; though, it was not as large as the main chamber. However, it also had its ceiling broken off or removed or whatever. Once again it was not to the extent of the main chamber. If the room had a ceiling it would be a dome of some kind, but halfway through there was no sign of anything being there at all. In the room there was a large platform, water making a thin moat around it. Inside the platform was a large statue of a dragon, matching the metallic color of the rocks that made up the temple. It was wrapped around a pillar and probably made to look like a sleeping dragon. At the top of the pillar was a crystal large enough to fit a person in. The sunlight beaming down from the ceiling made it shimmer and at the right angle caused a glare in Link's eyes. The dragon was no doubt made to look like it was guarding the crystal.

He looked around a bit, wondering where the Siren was. The crystal glared in his eyes again. He gritted his teeth and shaded his eyes. Then he noticed something. There was something _inside_ the crystal. He walked a little closer, so he could get a better look and hopefully avoid more glare. He saw the figure inside of it. It was that of a woman. Well, at least the top half was; the curves of her breasts could easily be seen even though there was a cascade of hair over them; and that made Link blush more than he had ever had in his life. The lower half looked like that of a glittering fish. Being a demi-goddess of a sort, Link had expected the Siren to be beautiful but he still had to double take to really appreciate that face. She wasn't as pretty as Farore or Zelda, but she was still pretty. He was actually kind of glad that Haizea wasn't around to see her.

The Siren's eyes were closed. She looked as if she was in a deep sleep. It was most likely because of the crystal. It was probably a spell of some kind to keep her out of the way. All Link had to do was just get her out of the crystal and he'd be one step closer to rescuing Zelda. He didn't now _how_ he was going to do it, but he might as well start by trying to get the crystal down. He could climb the dragon and just slide it down from there, easy as that. He never once bothered to think that it was perhaps too easy.

He went over and climbed on the dragon's head. He thought he felt some movement but took it to be overactive imagination. He walked along the neck and climbed up the arch of its back, watching out for the bumps of its wings. He had gotten within reaching distance of the crystal. His fingers had barely touched the glassy surface when the dragon statue suddenly just rose up. He lost his balance and slid down the dragons back right onto the floor on his side. He groaned and then managed to maneuver himself onto his back. He did not like what he saw.

Now that there were dragon teeth grinning down at him, Link came to the conclusion that the dragon statue was _not_ a statue. The smoky, hot smell of its breath came down on him. Green eyes were looking at him angrily, and most likely hungrily too. The dragon hissed at him and saliva dripped down near his leg. Link whimpered.

Nothing could ever be easy…


	13. The Crystal and the Dragon Part2

I like dragons, I really do. It hurt me a little on the inside to write this chapter... Oh well! Anyways, I'd like to thank **Yoshi with a bazooka** for the kind review.

And be proud of me people, I actually checked this chapter over for mistakes! Gaspeth! I know, a lazy person like me. Still, I'm not saying its perfect. It still might have mistakes. Well, see ya guys next week.

* * *

The dragon roared and Link quickly closed his eyes and covered his ears, but it still hurt. It was a roar that probably shook the entire Temple and it was angry. The dragon stopped its roar and when Link finally opened his eyes, the rank smelling mouth of the dragon was coming towards him. He yelped and just barely managed to roll away. He wasn't sure what was worse. Being eaten by a dragon or avoiding it the first time, only to be eaten by an angrier dragon two seconds later. When the dragon realized its prey had fled it, it howled in fury and looked around until its eyes set themselves on the prey again. Instead of charging at him, the dragon took a deep breath. When he heard that intake of breath, he knew what was going to happen. He ran away as fast as he had ever run before. He didn't even care that he was running right past the giant beast, who, luckily, didn't notice him. A stream of dark blue fire swept where Link had been standing. Stream wasn't a very accurate word, though. It was enormous amount of fire, all sweeping uncontrollably over the general area. The air was wavering all around the dragon and its fire and Link could feel its heat from where he was standing (which was near the dragon's hind legs). If he had been caught in that fire, chances are, not even his bones would be left. Just ashes.

As the dragon kept belching out flames in what seemed like a never ending breath, Link just back away very slowly. How was he supposed to fight a dragon?! Dragons weren't real! Right? _Well… they are if there's one standing right in front of me now._ He told himself. Still, how was he supposed to fight it and win? One thing he knew about dragons is that their scales were harder than diamonds. He heard stories about their bellies being their weak spot, but this dragon was armor-plated everywhere that he could see. The more he tried to find a weakness in the monster, the more he panicked. He couldn't find one. This dragon was all covered, literally. And he was scared. Terrified, actually. Everything always had a weakness. Always. But this dragon didn't.

The dragon finally stopped. The floor was now deformed, melted, and red hot. The dragon neared it and sniffed, presumably for Link's ashes. If the dragon wasn't satisfied, he was going to be in big trouble. He kept backing away slowly, trying to expand the distance between him and the dragon. If he got far enough, he could run.

Something bright glared in his eyes.

He looked up. The Siren's crystal gleamed in the sunlight. That's right. He couldn't leave. He had to save the Siren so he could save Zelda. But at the same time he began to really think about his situation. Zelda said she didn't want to be saved and there was a dragon with no weaknesses trying to kill him. Those two went hand in hand; he could just give up right now. Just leave and pretend none of this ever happened. But too many people were relying on him. The Zoras expected him to save the Siren. Farore expected him to save Zelda. And Haizea was bleeding to death right outside.

Haizea?

That's right! Haizea knew magic! Maybe he could help with the dragon! But Link had ordered him to stay where he was… he couldn't defy a direct order. But what if Link gave a new order? Even he had shouted could Haizea even hear him? The hallway wasn't that long but it was still long. And Link didn't have the kind of voice that carried, either. He cursed in his head. But a thought came to him. He didn't know if it would work. He didn't know that much about Haizea's curses. He was working on hunch and only a hunch.

The dragon was still sniffing the melted floor.

He had to do it very quietly. "I order you to get in here right now…" Link said in just barely a whisper. He found himself praying that his hunch was right. Then dragon jerked its head his way. The dragon's sense hearing is apparently very good. It roared its angry roar and spat a ball of fire at him. He squealed and slid away, only to meet the dragon's tail which had sent him flying to one of the walls. He fell into the water in the moat around the platform. He had thought it was a shallow moat, but it wasn't. It was at least seven feet deep. And he was glad, because if it was shallow, like he had thought, it probably would have hurt a lot more. If he had belly flopped, then the pain might have been the same. But he didn't and that was all he needed to know.

He saw the dragon examining the moat, but it was about ten feet off. Link swam up and quietly managed to get out of the moat. The quiet stopped as his hat flopped down to the floor. He grimaced and looked over at the dragon, which didn't seem to notice. It actually seemed frustrated about something.

"I cut off its senses, but it won't last. We have about five minutes." Haizea said from the entryway. Link's plan had worked.

"What took you so long?!" Link asked angrily and he flopped his hat back on.

Haizea, who had grown shades paler since Link last saw him, just shot him one of his glares. "I think I arrived awful quickly for a person whose kidney is falling out." He snapped.

Link winced. "Yeah, sorry… Do you know how to beat that thing?" He asked, pointing to the dragon.

"It can't be beaten." Haizea said plainly.

"What?" Link's voice was very high pitched and worried.

"It. Can. Not. Be. Beaten." Haizea enunciated.

"W-why not?!" He stuttered.

"If it was a normal dragon, it might have a weak spot along its chest area, where its heart is. But it's not a normal dragon. It's protected everywhere, but I'm sure you noticed that. The best thing we can do now is run." He said it all so… so normally. As if it was an easy thing to do.

"But we can't! There has to be some way!" Link said.

The dragon jerked slightly in their direction. The spell was wearing off.

Haizea grimaced. "I was hoping you wouldn't say that…"

"Then there is way?" Link asked. Haizea mumbled something and looked the other way. "Tell me." Link commanded.

"The Siren." He sighed. "If we can break her little crystal, the sound of her voice will kill the dragon."

"Alright, how do we do that? Your spell's wearing off, can you do it again?" Link asked, eagerness in his voice.

Haizea looked at the boy as if he was crazy. "Perhaps you don't fully understand. The dragon will die from the sound of her voice. So will we. The least that'll happen to us is we go insane, but we will most likely die with the dragon. I don't know about you, but I plan on living." He said.

Link shrugged. "We'll just cover our ears." He said simply. "You distract the dragon and I'll push the crystal down."

"What? Why do I have to do distract the dragon?" The slave asked, alarm clearly evident in his face and voice.

"Because, with all that bleeding you're doing, you can't sneak around too good." Link said. And without another word, the dragon finally turned its head at them and roared. "Well, good luck!" Link said with a smile at Haizea. Then he rushed off in the direction.

The dragon went to follow Link, but then something happened to it. As if someone had just slapped it in the face. "Sulfur-breath, down here." Link heard Haizea say. He looked over to just see what was happening. Haizea kept taunting the dragon and he waved his hands around. As he waved them, the dragon's head kept snapping. Link was amazed. Haizea was slapping the dragon with magic. He didn't know that was possible. But then again, he never really believed in magic until his little adventure had started.

He came to the pillar and looked it up and down. Last time, he had climbed the dragon to get the crystal. This time, the dragon was busy being slapped by a half-dead magician. It was not going to be easy. But then again, he realized that nothing in this little adventure was easy. He could not even recall one thing that had been easy since the whole thing started. Why should this be any different? This time around, he had to climb the actual pillar. Luckily enough, there was some sort of design going on with the pillar. Grooves here and there could prove to be good footing and grabbing spots. It still wouldn't be easy but it would be easier than if the pillar were plain. He started the climb, one by one, groove by groove. Slowly but surely, he'd get to the crystal. Around halfway up the pillar, Haizea shouted and Link was knocked down by the dragon's tail.

Link saw the dragon had Haizea pinned down with its claw, but it wasn't really paying too much attention to the slave. Its eyes were set on Link and it was breathing in again. Without another thought, he started to run, just like last time. Except this time, he was running away from the dragon and not towards it. He didn't pay attention to where he was running again and he tripped over something. That something, being the deformed and melted floor from where the last fire blast had been. Link hastily got up, watching the floor, and ran again just as the dragon spat out its extremely hot blue flame. This time, the blue was getting almost a deep purple, which meant that the flame was probably even hotter than before. Once again, he just barely managed to miss it. His hat, however, did not survive. The tip caught fire and without even a second thought, Link threw it off of him. He liked the hat. He didn't like it enough to wear it when it was on fire.

The flame didn't last as long as it did before. The hotter it was, the less the dragon could hold it, he thought. The dragon knew that this time, though, Link had survived. He growled and launched off, completely forgetting about the person under one of its claws, and headed towards Link. An unseen force had grabbed the dragon and pulled it back until one of its hind legs hit the water in the moat. No doubt this was more of Haizea's magic because the dragon hissed and glared down at the man. Link wasted no time. He ran back to the pillar and started climbing again. This time he was a little faster, but once again, as he reached the halfway point he was forced off. The dragon had gotten loose from its invisible hold and charged towards the pillar. Its claw was aimed right him, so he had to jump off. It hurt, but he was sure it would hurt less than a dragon claw.

The dragon had instead hit the pillar, but only a little bit of the metallic pillar had crumbled off. The dragon had controlled its swipe so no major harm would come to the pillar. The dragon turned to make a move for the boy that had avoided it. It was grabbed by the invisible whatever that Haizea used before. Link had a new idea.

He looked around and saw Haizea nearby, struggling with the magic he was using. He was bleeding again. "Haizea!" He called. "Throw it against the pillar!" The slave gave him a look like "What on earth are you talking about?" and then the realization hit him. He nodded, took a deep breath, and pushed the air. The dragon howled in frustration as it crashed into the pillar. It crumbled down and the crystal was knocked loose. Link could already see Siren's eyes fluttering open slightly as the crystal was falling.

It crashed down onto the floor and broke into pieces, sounded almost like broken glass rather the crystal rock breaking. The Siren, tired looking yet still beautiful held herself up, fishy tale flapping uselessly. She glanced around her as if she had just woken up and didn't know where she was. She stared blankly at the dragon and then her eyes focused and stared bitterly at it. A look of abject rage came upon her face. She bared her teeth at the dragon, which had begun to whimper for mercy to the Siren. She opened her mouth. Link hadn't thought one second about the repercussions of the sound of her voice.

She screamed, but for Link, it was muffled. He couldn't really hear it. And then he remembered what the sound of Siren's voice did to people. The muffled noise must have been him dying. And he felt frustrated that he was going to die and never even know if Zelda was alright. But he didn't topple over or black out. Then he realized that something must have been blocking his ears. He turned his head a little and saw Haizea. His ears weren't covered, they were just twitching a little, and he was staring at the Siren with a baffled look on his face.

Then Link heard something pop. He looked over to dragon. One of its eyes was hanging limply from its eye socket. Five broken optic nerves hanging limply beside it, only one holding it in. There was another pop, and he saw the dragon's other eye pop out of its socket. The little holes at the sides of its head, its ears most likely, began to bleed. It tried to holler in pain, but the Siren's voice muted it. Its head finally exploded. Red –black blood sputtering everywhere, all around and on them. The only thing it did not seem to touch was the Siren, herself. She spit at the still standing body of the dragon and then it started to fall on itself.

Haizea let Link go, still utterly confused. Probably wondering why his own head hadn't exploded at hearing the Siren's voice. Link wondered that too. But his real question was why Haizea had just saved his life. Before he could ask that, Haizea fell. At first Link thought he had dropped dead, and he panicked. But he could still see him breathing, so he relaxed a little. Then he panicked again, because Haizea probably was going to die from all that blood loss.

He hadn't even noticed the Siren had dragged herself over next to him until she had touched him lightly on the shoulder. Link jumped at her touch, which was slightly tingly. She looked at him thoughtfully and then looked at her crystal, then back at him again. Link had an idea what she was asking. "Yes… we came to, uh, rescue you." He wasn't sure how to speak to her. She smiled, which made Link blush a little. Then she looked at Haizea and frowned. She looked at him sadly and gestured to the wound on his side. "He was hurt when we were trying to get in here." He told her. She nodded and was about to touch the wound on Haizea's side, when the man suddenly woke and backed away a bit.

"Don't let her touch me!" He hissed. He was uneasy and a little panicked, but deathly tired. He was shivering a bit and then Link realized it was from fear. He was scared of her. And then he remembered Haizea's third curse. If a woman touched him it hurt him. It was the same for fish-women too. The Siren looked at him strangely and then nodded, almost as if she understood the situation. She looked at the slave gently. "I don't care!" Haizea spat.

It was Link's turn to look confused now. She hadn't said anything.

The Siren looked at Haizea as a mother does a disobedient child. He flinched and muttered, "Fine." She smiled in approval and then rested her hand on Haizea's wound. He screamed and thrashed a little. Link even thought he saw a tear or two but said nothing. The Siren finally lifted her hand and then Haizea back away quickly, hugging himself and whimpering. The man wasn't just hurt by her touch, he was traumatized.

The Siren then touched Link on the shoulder again, and again he jumped. She pointed over at the water in the moat. "You want me to help you in the water?" He asked her. She nodded and then glanced at her fish tail. "You want me to hold your tail?" She nodded. Link took her tail and lifted it and she used her arms to pull herself towards the water.

After she was in the water, Haizea hesitantly came next to Link. He noticed that the slave's wound was gone. All that was left was a scar. "She fixed it?" Link asked. Haizea merely nodded in response. The Siren's head popped out of the water.

"She says her name is Molpe." Haizea said hoarsely. "She's thanking us for releasing her."

"She can talk to you?" Link asked. Haizea just nodded again. "Why?"

"How should I know?" He croaked angrily. "I don't even know how I survived hearing her voice!"

"And I don't know why you saved my life." Link responded. Haizea froze and remained quiet.

"I just reacted…" He said. "I don't know why I did it."

Molpe splashed water on them and caught their attention. She looked Haizea and he nodded. She then dove back into the water and out of sight.

"She says she knows the way out and that we should get going to save her sisters." Haizea translated. Then he began to walk away. Link followed.

Perhaps Haizea wasn't as bad as he first thought.


	14. Back to the Mainland

Ah, Chapter... what number is it? Whatever... Anyways... I don't really have anything to say, actually... Um... well, enjoy.

* * *

Despite Molpe's insistence that they leave as soon as possible Link reminded her that they were only human. Well, at least _he_ was. He wasn't sure about Haizea anymore. Still, he told the Siren that after warding off a dragon so they could free her was no easy task. They needed a rest. At the time, though, Link hadn't said it quite like that.

They spent a few days more with the Zoras, enjoying their praise and celebrations. The Zoras even were willing to provide them with transportation to Hyrule. According to the queen, there was a Temple on the mainland. Link didn't really want to go back to the mainland so he asked of the whereabouts of the third Temple. Neither she nor the king knew where the third Temple was. Link even had Haizea ask Molpe, since he was too ashamed to speak to her after his first outburst, as to the location of the Temple but she did not know. So to the mainland they went, Link getting all the more tense as they neared.

"Why so nervous to go back to the mainland?" Haizea finally asked. "It's where you're from; I'd have expected you to be a bit more… enthusiastic."

Link just stared at the floor of the Zora boat. "My grandpa…" He finally said.

Realization dawned on Haizea's face, which turned into a look of sadistic glee. "Ah, I see now. You made this little adventure without his permission! Now you're afraid to go back for fear of confronting him!" He said, perhaps enjoying the situation a little bit too much. The boy wondered: who was more sadistic? Haizea or Dietrich? He wasn't sure but he was leaning more towards the slave. "That's cute. Caring about the opinions of others." Haizea finally added.

"It's not about others! He's my grandfather! He beat me half to death and I left anyways! He's probably furious! If he sees me I think… I think he'll chew me up and then spit me back out! Then stomp on me until I'm just a lump of pulp!" Link said, frustration growing with each word. He slumped down on the boat, brushing a hand through his hair. "And most of all… he's my only family and I… I didn't leave a note or anything… For all he knows I might've drowned myself out in the ocean…"

Haizea merely looked at him in surprise. "I had no idea family was so important to you." He said. "It's overrated, I think. Family-bah! It makes just about as much sense as tying a rock to your leg and hoping not to drown."

More and more, Link didn't understand what was going through the slave's head. "Family are the people who are always there for you. Didn't you have anything like that?" he asked.

Haizea looked at him with an "are you serious?" face. "I don't have much of my memories, remember? If I did have a family, I certainly don't remember them now." He spat. "They probably aren't worth remembering, either. I'm sure if the memories were strong enough, they would have stayed and other memories taken in its place."

"Well, then… what about your other masters?" the boy asked.

Of all the glares Haizea had given him, this one was the one that seemed to stop time itself. "Them? Family? The one who probably came even closet to that category was that washed-up has-been of a wizard, Dietrich-and even the lowliest of life-forms know how much I despise him." He hissed. His fists were clenched and he was gritting his teeth. Just the mention of his former masters had sent him into a frenzy like that.

The angered Haizea intimidated him. Curiosity, though, still was getting the better of Link. "What was so bad about the others?" His voice came out small.

Haizea sneered. "The one who owned me before Dietrich was a woman. Always she looked at me the way I look at a passing girl of interest. Upset that she couldn't touch me, she had me do back-breaking labor until she threw me on the wizard's island, thinking it deserted. That way, she wouldn't be _directly_ killing me. She wasn't even the worst. Do you really want to hear more?" Link shook his head, almost cringing now. "I thought not."

It was quiet for the remainder of the voyage.

* * *

The Zora vessel incurred many stares from passer-bys as it pulled up to the docks. Link thanked the Zora crew and waved a goodbye as he and Haizea left the harbor. The attitude of the slave had not improved much since their last conversation and Link had a feeling that anything he said wouldn't help it. Instead, Link just sat down on an empty bench trying to think. He had received no other information on this second temple except that it was somewhere on the land. Not much else. He racked his brain trying to think of where it could be but to no avail. A sudden movement from Haizea, who had remained standing, finally caught his attention. He just looked at the water, almost as if he was trying to stare it down. A splash from the water and the flip of a familiar fin told Link what was happening. Molpe was talking Haizea.

"What's she saying?" Link asked.

The slave shushed him and after a few more moments of silence he said, "She knows that you have no clue where to go. She suggests that you ask around rather than sit and do nothing. She seems very distressed from her tone of voice, as well." The boy didn't quite understand where a voice was used in all of this but he didn't address it.

"Well, I guess we should then." Link said. He hopped off the bench and began to walk towards the Marketplace into the crowd to question the people.

"You have fun." Haizea said, staying where he was. Before Link could object, he took another look into the crowd. Crowds had people. Lots of people of both genders. Link opened his mouth to say something before he went on when the slave interrupted, "I'll stay here. Don't waste your breath." Link gave one last suspicious glance and then went on his way.

* * *

Haizea took a seat on the bench shortly after Link had left. The little brat, always so suspicious. He didn't remember what on earth he did to gain such anger from the goddesses, but they didn't have to drill into the child's head that he was the spawn of all evil. He still had to wonder what exactly he did. Promiscuity couldn't have been the only reason, and if it was then the goddesses had most certainly overreacted.

Not wanting to think about the goddesses, as he was angry enough as it was, he thought about the whole situation with Molpe. He had heard her voice and his head not exploded like the dragon's. How was it that he was still alive? Even more confusing, why did he help the boy? When the Siren opened her mouth, he didn't even think, he covered the boy's ears. He had no reason to help him. If he had died then he'd be free! Well… free until another person came around and one of those damned goddesses came and explained the situation to them. Now that he'd thought about it, he'd probably be in the servitude of the Siren had he not saved Link. He wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing.

"Excuse me?" he heard a voice say. He glanced over to where the voice was to see a young woman. "Excuse me, is this seat taken?" She asked again, gesturing to a space on the bench. He shook is head and the woman sat down on the other side of the bench with a smile, setting down her bag and looking through it as if making sure everything was there. From the way she was dressed, he assumed she was a maid to some privileged family. She wasn't extraordinarily pretty. Overall, she was rather average looking. But he couldn't help but find something in her attractive. He didn't know what it was, but he quickly reminded himself of his last curse. So he ignored her. Well, he tried to. He kept glancing at her occasionally, hoping she wouldn't notice.

"Lovely day, isn't it?" she asked, attention still mostly on the contents of her bag.

"I-I suppose…" he said, surprised at the stutter.

"You're not from here, are you?" she said.

"No, I'm not. What gave it away?" He said with a smile.

She chuckled a bit, and he thought it was adorable. "I've never seen you here, that's what gave it away." She told him, taking her attention off her bag. "Where are you from? The kingdom across the sea?"

"You could say that." He replied, not wanting to say he actually had no idea where he was from.

"Well, you must've traveled a long way, right?" She asked. He made a gesture in between a nod and a shrug. "Then maybe you've seen some people?" There was some eagerness in her voice.

He was little disheartened. No doubt she concerned for a man that was out at sea right now. _Shut up, man. It's not like you could do anything with her._ He thought to himself. "Maybe I have."

"Okay, have you seen a man with a little girl? He's very big and evil looking, dark skinned and red hair? The little girl is a pretty blond, very innocent looking?" She asked eagerly. Haizea blinked a bit. He knew from the descriptions the two she was speaking of. To some degree he _did_ know where they were. But he also couldn't tell this woman. His real question was why she was looking for them.

He shrugged. "Sorry. I've never seen anyone like them." He said, and it wasn't quite a lie. He really had never seen them.

"Okay then… maybe you've seen a boy then? He wears green all the time? He's blond too." She said.

He looked at her strangely and then said, "Let's say I have seen a boy like that. How do you know him?"

A look of relief came across her face. "So you have seen Link… He is an acquaintance I know from the castle. He came to me the other day asking me about the princess… that girl I told you about earlier." She said. Then she turned and gave him a suspicious look. "Now how do you know him?" Oh damn. He hadn't expected that question to be thrown out in the wind. He couldn't just come out and say 'Oh, I'm just a slave he unwillingly accepted from my last bastard of a master!'

"I'm his cousin."

She blinked. "Wow, I didn't even know he had any other family besides his grandfather. You don't even look a bit like him either…" She said, getting a little closer as if to examine him.

"I'm a distant cousin." He said, quickly backing away a little so she wouldn't get too close. She still surveyed him closely and then she backed away, as if satisfied.

"I guess I'll take your word for it. I've just met you so you have no reason to lie." She said in defeat. After a moment, she finally looked at him again. "I'm sorry, I never even gave my name. My name is Rayeh."

He paused for a moment. He really wished he had a different name now. "I'm Haizea." He finally said, finally deciding that having a girls' name did not make a difference.

"I have to go now," She said while standing up. "It was very nice meeting you, Haizea." She went to go into the crowd, then she paused and turned to look a Haizea. "I work at the castle… if you're ever around…" A slight flush came on her face.

He felt his face going red, as well. "I'll… I'll pass by…" He said.

She smiled sheepishly and then ran off. He just watched her disappear into the crowd. He caught himself and stared at the floor blankly. He had never reacted that way to a woman before. It disturbed him.


	15. Fight!

This chapter was _so_ forced... Anyways! Ask and you shall receive! The proper pronunciation for Haizea's name is... I'm not quite sure to be honest but I pronounce it like this: HI-zay-uh. You guys are certainly welcome to pronounce it whichever way way you like.

* * *

Nothing. Link had to have been around the whole town three times over and he still had come up with nothing. And three times over was saying something. Castle Town was big. The sun was also beginning to set and a horrible truth dawned on him. He and Haizea had no place to stay for the night. That was something he probably should have thought about earlier but he was a ten year old boy. Ten year old boys don't often take to thinking things through completely. Sure, he could always go back home but he didn't want to chance his grandfather's reaction. Especially with a guy like Haizea following him around. He supposed the castle was an option, no doubt the king would let him stay-but chances were, word would get out that he was there and his grandfather would come running. The only place he could really think of was under a bridge or maybe at an inn on the edge of town-an area he hardly ever visited. He reviewed that option and decided to go for that. The Zoras had given them a good amount rupees for saving Molpe, so they could afford it.

So Link trekked his way back to the bench by the harbor. Haizea was there and seemingly very distracted, and he was pretty sure it wasn't because Molpe was saying anything to him. He didn't really care so he didn't ask.

They took the back roads through town. It wasn't as crowded as it was earlier but aside from the fact that Haizea couldn't get near a lady without getting vastly uneasy, Link just didn't want to be seen. Perhaps he was getting a little paranoid now but… he really didn't want to have to see his grandfather. At least not until everything was over and done with. If he could do everything the goddesses said he could do, then he could talk to Kendo again without fear of his eyes being gouged out.

He'd found what he thought was a respectable place and spoke to the girl at the counter. She didn't take him seriously at first. He hated that. Just because his head didn't come over the counter, everything was always a joke. Sometimes, being a child really sucked. A few rude words from Haizea and the woman realized it wasn't a joke.

"I'm terribly sorry, sir." She said, complete with a fake cheer and a fake smile. "Of course we can get you and your brother-"

"Cousin." Haizea interrupted.

She frowned for a second and then resumed with her fake smile. "We can get you and your cousin, settled in right away. Unfortunately, we only have one room open." She said, voice brimming with fakeness.

Haizea looked down at the boy, who nodded, figuring it was probably the best they could do when it was getting darker by the minute. After that, the woman led them to the room and left them saying "If there's anything you need, don't hesitate to let us know!"

"She could stop with bad act." Haizea spat. "Anyways, I call the bed."

"Then where am I going to sleep?" Link asked, putting his sword in the corner of the room.

"On the floor, obviously." The slave said it as if it were only common sense.

"No way. Why don't you sleep on the floor?" Link said in an annoyed tone.

The two glared at each other, then they both glanced at the one bed, then back to glaring at each other. They both lunged for it. Haizea, being the taller, made it first but Link followed soon after. And thus ensued a fist fight.

"I'm the kid, I say I get the bed!" the boy said angrily.

"I'm your elder! You respect your elders!" The slave retorted.

"But you don't look like an old fart so why should I respect you?!"

"That's it!" Haizea growled. Unseeable force pushed Link off and to the wall.

Link rolled onto the floor and then gaped at the slave. Had he just used magic on him? "You're gonna be like that then?" He said, getting angrier by the second. He stomped over to the corner and withdrew his sword from its sheath. Haizea grew a shade paler. Link smirked. "Yeah, that's right. It was kind of hard not to notice back at Molpe's Temple."

"Tch… You're more observant than I first thought…" Haizea said, standing up. He mirrored Link's smirk then and flicked his wrist. The sword flew out of Link's hand, but rather than falling to the floor it just floated in the air. The sword swooped horizontally to Link's neck, but stopped just a hair short. If he wasn't too afraid to move at the moment, the child would've been gaping. "But I have no problems wielding something I don't like against you."

Link held up his hands. "You get the bed." He said. The sword fell to the floor with a clang at Link's feet. Haizea smiled and then jumped on the bed, getting comfortable and then, "Now I order you to get off and sleep on the floor." If Link had a pictobox, the expression on Haizea would have been the pictograph he would keep for the rest of his life.

The slave scowled, got off and sat grumpily on the floor.

"I don't know why I didn't think of that before…" Link said brightly as he jumped on the bed this time.

"How do you know I won't fully carry out that spell this time?" Haizea sneered from his spot on the floor.

Link was still feeling bright. "Easy. You said you hated all your other masters. If you hated them so much, you probably could've killed them anytime you wanted but you didn't. I just figured you can't harm your masters. Even when we were fighting all you really did was push me away. I was the one doing all the hitting." He said cheerily.

"Feh…" Haizea growled. "Observant _and_ smart… I hate that combination…"

"Oh yeah, and earlier when you were talking to that lady… what was with the whole cousin thing?"

"If I have to be related to you, I refuse for it to be directly."

* * *

He didn't know what time it was when he heard the voices from one of the other rooms. He looked at the floor to see Haizea dead to the world asleep, or seemingly so. Link just scowled and glanced at the walls, trying to pinpoint the voices. Left wall.

"… it was jus' so weird! I ain't nev' seen an'thin' like it!"

"I thought yous was supposed to be over in the high class part of town? What was yous doing in a forest?"

"I was thar, iss jus' that thar was guards and I hads on me' lossa swag. I juss went this one way and I was thar in a foress."

"Well, what d'yous sees?"

"I dunno. It was some sorta arch-like thing. Had all these strange symbols onnit. Nev'seen an'thin' that even come close to it."

"Why didn't yous check inside for any loots?!"

"Place ga'me the righ' frikkin creeps! I wassn't 'bout to go in thar, no matt' wot value'bles in thar!"

"Yous nothing but a pansy!"

"'Ey! Prolly nuthin' in thar an'way! I'wass in a foress! Hardly any value'bles in a foress!"

That was when Link tuned out of the conversation. They just went on about what "value'bles" could be in a forest. Wow, he was getting a tip off from thieves. And for free! They didn't even know what they saw! But then again, had he gone into the forest a few weeks ago and seen what he thought they saw, he wouldn't know what it was either. Still, if it was a Temple, what was it doing in a forest? The only forest nearby a "high-class" place was the Lost Woods and that wasn't really close to the ocean. Maybe it wasn't anything important. But at the same time they had no other leads. It wouldn't hurt to try… But not now. Maybe at a more reasonable time after the sun was up…


	16. Doubts

I'm sorry the last few chapters have been short. This chapter, though, was mainly because I was totally dreading doing it. I had no ideas for it and I really didn't feel like working on it. So, I didn't check it for mistakes or anything, I just wrote it and I'm submitting it. It's been kind of stressful lately. I'm working on a costume, doing volunteer work, and I found a puppy the other day-I've been spending most of my time working on the costume, working in general (without pay... grr), and trying to find the puppy's owner, so I've got my hands full.

Eh, my wrist hurts... hope I don't have carpal tunnel...

* * *

The next morning, Link took note that there wasn't anyone in the room next to them anymore. No doubt they cleared out before the sun came up.

"Are we visiting that forest those two pieces of scum were talking about last night?" Haizea asked.

The boy blinked in surprise. "You were awake last night?"

"Hmph. I don't sleep that often and when I do I sleep lightly." The slave said casually. "So are we going or not? If we are I'd like it if we went now. Forests are easy to get lost in, better to look in the daylight."

Common sense, Link supposed. There wasn't much conversation on the way to the high-end of Castle Town. He managed to buy a shield to replace his old wooden one, this one being made of bronze and didn't seem to bother Haizea at all. He couldn't find a hat to replace his old one that the dragon had burned up so he continued on the way, his head feeling naked.

There were many guards in that part of town, probably from the crime spree of the thieves the previous night. Link had no trouble getting past any guards that would normally kick his ilk out of the area, though. Most of the sentries recognized him-his grandfather didn't give lessons only in the castle after all-so they left him alone. Haizea was left alone simply through association. So there were no real problems on the way. Their main problem came when something came in between them and the forest. A structure called a wall. The boy cussed in his head. He overheard thieves last night; of course they weren't just walking the streets! They were roof-walking, so they could get over the wall easily.

"How are we supposed to get past this wall…?" He was thinking aloud more than asking a question but he was about to get an answer fairly quick.

Without another word Haizea simply walked up to the wall, tapped on it lightly and nodded his head in a sort of understanding. "I would take a few steps back if I were you." He said. Link was about to ask why but before he could even take those few steps, Haizea placed a hand on the wall and there was an explosion.

After that, time felt like it was passing in slow motion. Chunks of stone brick and dust were just about everywhere. Some leftover chunks of the brick were still falling. He coughed out dust and tried to wave it out of the way. He could make out the slave's silhouette through the cloud of dust. Then he heard people yelling. He had a very good hunch that sentries would be on their way soon. The silhouette of Haizea told Link to hurry up as it moved away from him and into the forest. Time still feeling like it was passing remarkably slow, the boy stumbled and followed the shadow of the slave into the forest.

When he finally caught up to the man Link could only say, "What the heck did you just do?!"

Haizea paused and blinked in surprise at the boy. "I blew up the wall. Did it look like anything else?"

"We could've just climbed over it!" Link yelled.

"Yes, we could have but we would've been noticed with all the security around the area. Blowing it up was faster."

"And it still gets attention! Probably even more than if we'd have just climbed!" Link snapped.

"It was faster and it provided cover. I don't see what your problem is." Haizea scoffed. And with that he kept moving forward.

Link just opened and closed his mouth, trying to find a response. He hastily stumbled to catch up to the man again and said, "What do you mean 'you don't see hat y problem is?' You _blew up_ a wall! You don't just go around blowing up walls!"

"And I don't, it was just for the moment." Haizea reasoned.

"You still don't blow up walls!" The boy snapped.

The slave rolled his eyes and let Link take the lead. He just stomped on forward for what seemed like a while. It was then that he realized… he had no idea where he was going. The thieves had only mentioned that the strange gateway was in the forest, nothing more. He also remembered how Haizea had said he'd heard the whole conversation. He thought about asking him if he had heard the thieves specify as to the location, but he was still angry at the slave and really didn't feel like talking to him. At all. The more he tried to figure the guy out, the more confused he became trying to figure him out anyways. At this point, he'd rather be lost.

Hours had passed when the slave finally stated the obvious. "You're lost."

"So?" Link hissed.'

"Just wanted to make sure you knew. At least you're not in denial." Haizea said with a shrug.

Link turned to glare at him to see the slave seeming… distracted. He was staring into the forest, almost as if intrigued. As much as he really didn't want to talk to him now, he remembered the incident back at the Temple; when Haizea warned him that going into the dragon's chamber was a bad idea. "What's up?"

Haizea didn't remove his gaze from the forest. "This forest… it's strange."

"Strange… how?" Link asked.

Haizea glanced at the boy again and smirked. "Wouldn't you like to know."

Link gave him a flat look. "Do I have to order you to tell me or will you just drop the freaking attitude?" He snapped.

The slave's face turned into a scowl and he glared at the child. He seemed to be choosing his words carefully. "I don't think I'm the one with the attitude." An indirect insult, Link noted. "When we first came into this forest it was like any other forest. Normal. However, as we've been getting deeper inside the feeling has changed. There's a very strong sense of magical energy here."

"Magical energy? How come I don't feel it?" Link asked.

Haizea snorted, "You have no magical abilities in you whatsoever, of course you wouldn't feel it."

Link frowned at him. "Then how do I know you're not making stuff up?"

The slave looked foully. "Do I have any reason to make it up? What could I possibly gain from making something like this up?" He snapped. "It may be hard to believe but I'm not as much of a fiend as those so-called goddesses make me out to be!"

Link winced. He wasn't expecting that. Then again, there were no direct insults or no hostility towards him. Rather, all the hostility was directed towards the goddesses. Once again, the question came into his head: What on earth did he do to gain such anger from the goddesses?

It was the slave's turn to walk off angrily now and for some reason… Link felt guilty. He felt guilty for doubting Haizea, the man that the goddesses told him not trust. If the goddesses told him so then they had to be right, simple as that. But… something crazy had come into his mind. What if the goddesses _were_ wrong? After all, Haizea had saved him. Sure, he didn't even know why he did it, but he saved him. And it was true: What reason did he have to lie about the magical energy stuff?

The guilt was hanging over him like a dead skunk now…

He reluctantly caught up to the cursed magician. "I'm sorry…" He said quietly.

"Hmph." Was the only response he received from Haizea but for a second, Link thought he saw a glimmer of surprise. It was silent after that for a bit. "I think the forest has something that commands a lot of magic farther in…" He said.

"The gateway?" Link asked. He made it short and simple. He still wasn't sure if Haizea was completely fine at the moment.

"Possibly." He growled.

Again, Link winced. Yeah, he was still a bit peeved. So they kept walking.


	17. Music

What's this? An early chapter? Gaspeth! I felt bad for giving you such a crappy chapter earlier so here you get a new one early. Granted, it's shorter than the last (just barely making 1000 words) but this chapter was made with love... But I didn't check it over. Hey, gimme a break it's 2 AM. So here you go. Early chapter for my peeps. But you don't get the next one till Thursday.

* * *

As they kept walking that was when Link began to really notice things in the forest. As he understood it, most forests weren't as quiet as people said they were. Birds and animals made all sort of sounds. Sure, they weren't as loud as people in the town, but it was never completely quiet. In this forest everything was quiet. It was unnervingly quiet actually. And he could've sworn that they had passed the same tree at least four times, but then again this forest was called The Lost Woods.

They eventually stopped to take a break. They had been walking hours on end, or it felt like it at least. Haizea didn't seem to be bothered by all the walking, but Link was. When his bottom and planted itself firmly on the ground so his feet would have a break, he looked up into the tops of the trees. Patches of sunlight came down through openings in the vast canopy. The light was still bright, so he assumed it might be a little past midday. He couldn't tell with all the leaves obscuring the vision of the sky.

His thoughts went to the thief that had seen the strange gateway. It didn't seem like he went too far into the forest when he saw it. He thought about suggesting turning back and looking more in the shallows of the forest. He rethought it as he remembered the wall that Haizea had utterly destroyed. No doubt the sentries were still keeping a watchful eye out. They couldn't go back. And the strange magical force that Haizea seemed so intent on finding interested him somewhat. If it was another insanely evil being bent on destroying him, he didn't want anything to do with it. Yet somehow, he didn't think it was. The forest just seemed… peaceful. It really didn't seem like anything bad would happen. He wondered if that was the magical energy he felt? He thought about asking but… he still wasn't too sure if Haizea was up to talking.

As he just sat there and Haizea was off in his own little world, something broke through the silence. Both of them jerked up.

"… Music?" Haizea said, still with the intrigued face.

Link listened ore closely. Yes… it was music. A song, probably being played by a flute of some kind. It was lively and upbeat; definitely something one could dance to.

"Let's find it!" Link said without thinking. He didn't know why he said that but he really did want to find the source. Music in the middle of such a quiet, and most likely enchanted, forest was something that his little boy's sense of curiosity wanted to find the source of. He expected the slave to object outright, but he did something unexpected instead. He stared at the direction of the music and smiled. It was a creepy smile too, a smile made of some malicious intrigue. He expected as much from Haizea… but he also seemed different… Link brushed it aside as the goddesses' opinions in his head.

Haizea took off running. Link gawked for a second. He was _really_ fast. The boy took off after him, still staying behind significantly but not so much that the slave was out of view. As he followed him, the music was becoming more audible. That was a good sign, but given how strange Haizea seemed to be acting he wasn't sure how good it was. If he got there first what would happen? He grimaced and tried to pick up the pace. He still stayed behind but he had caught up a little more. He remembered the morning when he first saw Ganondorf, that morning when he was late. What was happening now was just like that, in a way. His lungs felt like they were about to explode in his chest. Then the slave came to a sudden stop. Link tried to mimic the stop but found himself sliding down on his fanny. He grunted and Haizea shushed him quickly and quietly. Link forked an eyebrow and look up at the man. There was a certain word to describe the way he looked… Feral? Yes, that was it. Feral. Haizea looked feral and the untamed gaze was focused straight ahead. Link was glad the stare wasn't focused on him but he felt sorry for whoever it was he was staring at. He looked over in the direction Haizea was staring so intently at.

It was a green-haired girl, probably around his own age, sitting on a tree stump playing an ocarina in a small clearing. The forest dust around her seemed to sparkle and dance along with the notes that she played. She hadn't even noticed the two people watching at the edges of the tree. He got to his feet and just watched the girl play her round flute. She seemed so… natural. It was like she belonged here in this forest. But he wondered what a girl was doing in the middle of a magical forest. Before he even knew what he was doing, Link took a step forward. A twig snapped. The girl's face jerked to his direction in alarm. She looked from Link to the dangerous looking Haizea, who looked possibly even more feral than when Link had just looked two minutes prior. Her eyes locked on Haizea. She screamed and cried something out, running away into the trees behind her.

"Wait!" Link called out in an attempt to get her to come back, but she didn't. He wondered what just happened. She wasn't scared of him, she was scared of Haizea. He looked over to where the enslaved magician was. He no longer wild, now he looked like his normal self, but baffled.

"What just happened?" He asked Link. He was utterly confused.

"I dunno, you tell me. She screamed at you." The boy said in equal confusion.

"I remember sitting down and hearing that music… Then I heard the girl shout 'Winter!' and… How did I get here?" Haizea looked around him. He really didn't know what had just happened. And winter? He remembered the girl shouted something out before she ran away. Winter? Yes, that was it… but what did that mean? And how did it effect Haizea? In fact, what happened to him?

"When we heard the music, all of a sudden you just smiled and took off. When I caught up with you, you had this crazy look on your face and you were staring at the girl." Link explained. "You don't remember that?"

Haizea rubbed his head, as if he had a headache. "Something like that, but vaguely… The feeling was very familiar…" He said. "My head hurts…"

"Well… that was totally weird…" Link muttered.


	18. Saria

And here I bring you the next chapter of which I do not know the number of. One of these days I'll pay attention to it. Also, I did not check this chapter over, so expect grammatical errors and spelling errors. Here's where I start to deviate just a tiny little bit from Zelda doctrines and-or dogmas(sorry, I forget which is which). Well, whatever. Just don't throw full wine bottles at me. D:

For those of you not in an Eastern timezone, you might think this is an early chapter. It's not. Where I'm at it's 1 AM, and therefore Thursday.

* * *

Link looked around a bit, trying to see if he could find the girl again. He wanted to know what she meant when she screamed 'winter.' It was a season, yes, but what did that have to do with anything? That and she might know where the gateway was. The sooner they found the gateway the sooner they could do whatever they had to do and leave. He wasn't sure that staying in this forest was a good thing. He remembered the direction she had run off in so he started and then paused. He looked back Haizea, who was just standing there, still confused apparently.

"Um… Are you up to keep going?" He asked.

Haizea looked at him as if he had just noticed the boy. "Oh… yes. I can keep going…"

Link wasn't sure if Haizea even knew what he was saying. He'd never seen the man so distracted and he was pretty sure that wasn't a good thing. Nonetheless, he moved on listening all around him. It was mostly to see if he could hear any footsteps, more specifically Haizea's.

It wasn't long before he heard something. It sounded like someone was breathing hard, like if they were scared. Another thing that helped was what at first Link thought to be a large bit of sparkling forest dust, but this thing had dragonfly-like wings. The winged thing flitted around erratically and then retreated to where the breathing was coming from behind a bush. A pair of eyes peered over the bush and widened. The girl squealed again and retreated back into the bush crying out, "Stay away friends of Winter! Stay away!"

"I really don't know what you're talking about." Link said. "I've never even really experienced a real winter and this guy…" he glanced over at Haizea, who still seemed distant. "I'm pretty sure he's a regular guy." _But I could be wrong…_

The girl looked up at them again, wary but curious. Her winged companion began floating around her cautiously. "You're not with Winter… But that man…" She looked at the slave, as if examining him, "I guess he's not…" She looked over at her winged creature and told it angrily, "He's just a human! He's not part of Winter or Summer!" The little creature seemed to cringe in response but if it said anything, Link didn't hear it.

"Winter… Summer… What's that mean?" Haizea asked, seeming to snap back into reality somewhat. The boy still thought he looked a little dazed.

"Hmm?" The girl glanced over at Haizea, almost as if she had forgotten him. "We thought you were a part of Winter at first. We Kokiri are aligned with Summer, so Winter is our enemy." She said with a smile. "You'll see it never snows in this forest!"

_It doesn't snow around here anyway._ Link thought, but he didn't tell the girl. Other than that, the girl seemed to be babbling nonsense. Aligned with seasons? And one more thing… "What's a Kokiri?"

The girl looked at him strangely. "I'm a Kokiri. I have many brothers and sisters too! We all come from the Great Deku Tree! He protects this forest!" Babbling more things he didn't understand, this girl was. She looked Link over this time. "Come to think of it… You dress a lot like us."

"What? The green? Green's just my favorite color…" What a strange girl, he thought.

"We all dress in green here… Sometimes I wish there was a bit more color in our lives but…" The winged creature near the girl flitted around her quickly, grabbing her attention. "Ah, yes!" She said to it. She then looked back at Link and Haizea. "You two should come meet the Great Deku Tree! I'll take you to him!" She grabbed Link's wrist and pulled on him, dragging him further into the forest. Haizea followed without a word.

A few minutes later, the girl released her grip on Link to let him follow on his own. On the way, the girl introduced herself as Saria. The winged creature she had with her she said was called Roani. When Link asked what exactly Roani was, Saria went into a long drawn-out explanation of how the creature was an Emissary of Summer and how all Kokiri had one by their side. It wasn't making any sense to Link However, Haizea, who had somewhere along the way went back to his bitter, scowling self, told Link that it was a fairy. The child noted that when the slave said this, he seemed to have a sense of uncertainness in him. He wasn't sure if it was just lingering after effects of what occurred earlier or if Haizea just wasn't sure that the creature actually was a fairy. Link had never seen one, though he knew some people who claimed they had. Recalling those people, he remembered their descriptions of the fairies. Some people had described them looking like the creature that flitted near Saria, others described them as beautiful women who would heal one's wounds, and one or two people even said they were wicked, evil creatures with fair faces that desired only to trick people. He really hoped the fairy with Saria wasn't one of the ones in the last category.

Saria then began to ask Link all the questions. Where was he from, how old was he, why he was wearing a sword and shield, what was he doing in the forest-all sorts of questions. He answered them all to the best of his abilities. He didn't want to answer all of them but he didn't want to leave a bad impression either. When she was done questioning Link, she began to ask Haizea questions. He told her to mind her own business. Haizea obviously didn't care about leaving good impressions. Realizing she was going to get anything out of the slave, Saria just kept leading the way. It remained silent for the rest of the way, and the silence made the trek seem like years.

"Here it is!" Saria finally said. She led them through a narrow clearing in the forest, which led to an even greater clearing. In the large clearing was a whole village with houses that were child-sized. Link could only see children… possibly all around his age maybe looking a little younger. All of them had their own fairies and all of them were staring. Any other time, the boy would be amazed but at the moment it just felt… awkward. Everyone was staring… and he didn't see any adults anywhere.

A boy, freckled with an angry face, stomped up. He glared at Link and then looked at Saria, where he just dropped the foul face and changed it to one of concern. "Saria, what are you doing bringing outsiders here? It's not safe. They could be dangerous." He said.

"Nonsense." Saria said. Her attitude suddenly changed from that of a child's to that of intelligent woman; a strange sight when the person speaking looked like a child. The whole demeanor she had before just suddenly changed. "Do you really think I would bring anything dangerous here, Mido?"

The boy called Mido seemed flustered. "But-I mean, look at them! That pale one there is just weird-"

The bottom of Haizea's boot met with the boy's head. "_Who's weird you little brat?_" He hissed.

"Get off him!" Link snapped. The slave glared at him but did so reluctantly.

Mido fixed his hair and pulled his hat back down on his head, getting even redder in the face. "See that, Saria!? That violence! They're dangerous!"

"It serves you right! You're pretty much saying you don't trust my judgment." She said, arms folded and an insulted face looking away from Mido.

"N-no! Not all! I trust your judgment-"

"Then stop being so suspicious. These two mean us no harm." She said it as if she was repeated it for the umpteenth time. Mido, if possible, went even redder and dropped the subject. He merely stepped to the side and glared at Haizea, probably because of the humiliation he was feeling due to the magician's inability to take an insult. "Well now… That aside, I'll take you to the Great Deku Tree now." Saria seemed to be perky again and then walked on ahead.

Link followed immediately, but paused when he heard something. He looked back and saw Mido in Haizea's way. He was just smirking at the child, then he walked around him and walked past Link.

"What was that about?" the boy asked.

"Hmph, the boy was making empty threats. Something about being humiliated in front of 'his girl' and how'd he get back at me. Nothing important." He said seeming bored.

"You really have no people skills, you know that?" Link said, to which Haizea merely shrugged.

The girl was leading them straight through to the end of the village. The two received many stares and Link could make out a few whispers. Most of them were just curiosities about what they could possibly be; especially that "tall, pale one" which the boy knew meant Haizea. He never thought that his companion was tall, average sized for an adult maybe, but as he thought about it… no adults here. Anyone adult sized would naturally be tall in the eyes of these people or whatever they were. Kokiri, did they call themselves? It was weird. Why were they all kids?

They kept going until they were past the actual village and walking through a clear path. No bushes or even twigs on it, it was just simply a grass path. It wasn't a long path, but when they reached the midpoint of it, a blue fairy came from the end of the path and stopped by Saria. It fluttered up and down in front of her and the girl sighed. She turned to the two. "It looks like the Great Deku Tree won't be able to see you right now. Navi, here, says he's in the middle of something." Saria then looked back at the fairy; no doubt it was saying something to her.

"How can a tree be busy?" Haizea asked Link in a whisper. The boy shrugged.

Saria then turned back to them as fairy she was speaking to rushed back to where it had come from. "She says she'll come to see us when the Great Deku Tree can see us." She said. She closed her eyes in a thoughtful expression and stayed that way for a few moments. When she finally opened them she said, "I'll show you around then!" And then, as she had done before, she grabbed Link's hand and pulled on it and she went forward speedily.

The village didn't seem that big, but it the tour Saria gave lasted for a while-or felt like it, at least. It wasn't a bad thing and he did try to pay attention but it left Link's mind wandering to other thoughts. He still had to find two more Sirens and he kept thinking about Zelda. How was she? Was she hurt, was she planning to escape, did she escape, was she alive? He didn't like to think about that last question. He assured himself that she was alive and doing just fine. He couldn't think such depressing thoughts.

"You seem distracted." The girl finally interrupted. Link blinked for a moment. He then realized that he and the girl were alone. They were still in the village, just in a very out of the way place.

"Where'd Haizea go?" He asked glancing around.

"Mido dragged him off somewhere." Saria said. "What's wrong?"

"Well, I don't know what that guy's going do. He's been acti8ng weird lately-"

"No, no, not that. What's _really_ wrong?" She asked. Link stared at her for a moment. She was looking right back at him in the eyes, as if she was trying to see into his soul. It creeped him out a bit. "I get it now, it's a girl."

"Huh?"

She smiled a bit. "You're thinking about a girl, aren't you? You're worried for her." She said.

"How do you know about Zelda?" He asked quickly.

She leaned on her heels and then her toes, smile still on her face. "I didn't, you just told me." Link flushed and looked the other way. "Now I get why Roani wanted you to meet the Great Deku Tree."

"Huh?"

She giggled. "You say that a lot." His face reddened again and Saria merely looked up, staring at nothing in particular. She seemed a bit familiar to him for some reason... "The Great Deku Tree is a great and old spirit. He's a part of everything in this forest; all the trees around us are a part of him. He's the center of it all. And being as old as he is, he has a great knowledge of many things. He could tell you some things that might help you, answer some of your questions. Roani knew that you were a part of a big quest… to save the princess." She then said something very quietly but Link could still make it out. "Again." She said "again" at the very end of the sentence. To save the princess again?

"_Your generation has little knowledge of Hyrule's past. It is plagued with a repetition of what is happening now."_

Farore had said that the first time he had spoken with her. He really had no idea what she meant when she said it. Now he thought he may have had some understanding of it. Saving Zelda, defeating Ganondorf… Did this happen before?

"I think I just gave you a new question." Saria interrupted his thoughts. "I'm sorry." She said apologetically.

Link blinked for a moment, not sure how to respond. Then a girl came running up to where he and Saria were. "Hey, Saria! You won't believe what just happened!" She said excitedly. "Mido challenged that tall, pale man and just got his butt kicked! The best part, that man didn't even touch Mido!"

Both he and Saria found themselves sighing. There was just no end to the trouble…


	19. Nostalgia

Once again I didn't check it over. In fact, I will say it right now so I don't have to say for each and every chapter... Unless I say otherwise, I never double-check what I write. There, I said it. Live with it. I'm a teenager, being lazy is a part of the contract. That and I'm consumed with Majora's Mask right now...

Here's something funny. Did you guys know that in Japanese _Deku_ means tree? So when we say the Great Deku Tree, we're really saying the Great Tree Tree? Hehe, how redundant. Of course, I could be wrong. I know no Japanese and my dad was the one that told me. Whatev. Here you go, peeps, enjoy.

* * *

After the rather one-sided fight was broken up, the fairy Saria called Navi flitted over. Sara nodded at the fairy and then looked at Link. "The Great Deku Tree is ready to see you but only you. Your friend is going to have to stay here."

"We're not friends." Both Haizea and Link said in unison.

Saria shrugged and shooed Link on. Navi led the way for him this time and he wondered why he had to go alone. Not that it bothered him. To be honest, he was tired of having someone around him all the time.

He was on the grass path again, watching the fairy flitter in front of him. For some reason, a wave of nostalgia came over him. It was strange… It happened with Saria and it was happening with this fairy now too. In fact, from the moment he stepped in the forest, everything seemed kind of familiar. He remembered how Haizea mentioned something about a magical energy when they were still exploring it by themselves. Somewhere along the way, Link thought he felt it too… a feeling of peace. But it was the kind of peace one felt after being away from a place a very long time… a place like a home. Saria, Navi… even Mido and the other children seemed so familiar to him, yet he could swear that he'd never met any of them before today.

The blue fairy fluttered on ahead quickly towards a large tree at the end of the grass path. It was a very, very large tree. It would take quite a few people to wrap around the thickness of the tree. Then he noticed something else about the tree… it had a face. Or at least what looked like a face on it. There were eyes, a nose, a mouth, all looking like the face of an elderly man. Even more shocking was that the face actually seemed to look down on him. It said something. Link was too busy gaping to understand what it said, especially since it wasn't opening its mouth when it spoke.

"_Child, are you alright?_"

Link snapped out of it. He managed to say, "Blarg." The tree made a sound that reminded the boy of the groaning of an old house, like the one where the ex-wizard Dietrich lived. It took him a few seconds to realize it was a laugh.

"_I suppose to see a tree that is capable of communication is a bit of a shock._"

Link nodded; mouth still agape. The other thing that was surprising was that the strange laugh was familiar…

"_I am the Great Deku Tree. I am the one who protects this forest._"

The boy's mouth opened and closed, trying to speak but nothing was working right. When he had spoken with Farore, she had at least a humanoid appearance, so he could speak easily to her (sort of). This, however, was a tree. Finally he managed, "Erm, Link."

"_I have heard of your quest, Link, to save the princess of destiny._" At that moment, Link wondered why these helpful sorts didn't seem to be able to talk normally. "_Ask me anything you wish._"

That was it? "There's no catch this, right?" He asked, just to be sure.

The Tree made its groan-like laugh and said, "_No, there is no catch. Simply ask and I will answer to the best of my abilities. It is the least I can do to help you on your quest._"

"Okay… first question: Why are you helping? Not that it's a bad thing or anything, I'm just curious…" He partly lied. He _was_ curious but normally when someone, or something, you just met was being so helpful within two minutes of introductions, something was up or in it for them.

"_Saria brought you here because she sensed you were troubled and on a mission. She thought that my wisdom would perhaps aid you in your troubles._"

It made sense now that Link thought about it. When he first met Saria she seemed like a normal girl, then when they arrived at the village her attitude suddenly changed. When she first met him, she was trying to assess him and what better way to assess a child than to act like a child. But then that meant Saria wasn't a child… "What exactly are the Kokiri?"

"_The Kokiri are my children. Little spirits of the forest born from my own. They can take any form they wish but their most favored appearance is that of children._"

So they weren't kids then. It was too good to be true, a village of only kids… "Saria… I think I've met her somewhere before. Have I?"

The Tree remained quiet for a second, as if he was thinking before answering. "_In a manner of speaking, yes._"

"In a manner of speaking?" Link asked, urging the Tree to elaborate.

"_You are the reincarnation of many heroes past. Once upon a time, you lived here in the forest and Saria was one of your closest friends. She was deeply saddened by your departure to do a mission of a very similar nature to the one you are on now._"

This time, it was Link's turn to remain quiet for a moment. "What does reincarmination mean?"

"_Reincarnation_." It was a different voice, female and she was enunciating the word. Link realized it was the fairy, Navi. "It basically means your soul is recycled."

"And what does that mean?" Link asked.

"_When a great evil arises in Hyrule, a hero is born to defeat the evil. The hero is the same person, or rather a person with the soul of heroes past._"

"I guess that makes some sort of sense." Actually, it made no sense but he figured that was the best he was going to get. As for now, he had to focus on saving Zelda. "Where's the gateway in the forest? It's supposed to have some weird symbols on it."

"_The gateway is of no concern to you at the moment. It is not what you seek._"

That wasn't what he wanted to hear. It really wasn't. It was just a bogus lead from a bunch of stupid thieves, then… "Wait, no concern to me at the moment?"

"_It is of no use to you now. You will know when it is of use._"

He wasn't going to get anything more out of the Tree on that subject. He sighed. A false lead and he had no idea where the next Temple… he felt like a bit of an idiot at the moment. There was knowledgeable talking tree right in front of him. "Um, then do you know where the Temple of the Siren is here on the mainland?"

"_It is much closer to your home than you thought. It lies hidden beneath the Hyrule Castle. It has probably not been seen or thought of centuries._"

Under the castle? Link grimaced. That wasn't good. It's true that he had access to the castle… but not to that much of the castle. The basements of the castle were strictly limited to soldiers and occasionally a maid or two and what he was looking for was probably on the deepest level of basement. That was a place he doubted even the king would send soldiers to guard, which was some hope. Still, it was getting past the other guards in the higher basements that would be the tricky part. He sighed. He might have to break and enter with Haizea's help. Yes… that would probably be it and he really didn't like the idea of it…

"_Is that all you wish to ask?_" the Tree said.

Link thought for a moment. "I guess so. I should probably get going then. Thank you Great Deku Tree." Said Link, not forgetting his politeness. After all, a great spirit of the forest and all who just helped him out; politeness was the least he could give it. He gave a small bow and then began to turn to leave.

"Wait! Don't go so fast!" Navi cried out. Link turned to see what was wrong but he didn't really see anything. In fact, it suddenly went dark. A dark green, to be exact, and he could see some specks of light through little holes. Then he realized that there was something covering his face. He took it off and looked at it. It was hat, looking very similar to the one he had before a dragon burned it up. He wasn't sure what to make of it.

"_That cap was crafted from the fibers of this forest. It will protect you from illusions._" He heard the Tree say.

"Illusions?"

"_I sense such protection will be of great use to you in the future._" The Tree said. "_Also, I sensed a sort of uneasiness from you about not wearing a hat._"

Link smiled. "Thanks!" He put on the hat, feeling the feeling of nakedness leaving as soon as the green fabric reached his head. He had no idea wearing a hat was such a big part of him until that moment. Plus, it was a magical hat and that was just plain cool.

The blue fairy then flitted over to Link, close enough so that he could see the silhouette of her little body through her pixie dust. "I'll lead you out of the forest. Just head to the entrance of the village when you're ready to leave." She said. Then she fluttered on ahead. Link once again thanked the Tree and then took after the fairy.

As he was on the grass path walking back towards the village, he thought about where the next Temple was. He still had no idea how he was going to get there without massive damage to the castle, but he had to get there! The more time he spent not doing anything was the more time that Zelda spent captive! He promised her that he would come save her no matter what! Even if she didn't want him to save her that was too bad. He was going to save, regardless of her wishes. After all, you don't just go make a guy promise something like that and then tell him not to do it. That just wasn't right.

"Thinking about your little girlfriend? That look of determination on your face gives it away." Said the smug voice of Haizea. "Nice hat, by the way." He added sarcastically.

"She's not my girlfriend!" Link said automatically. He could feel all the blood rushing to his face.

The slave smirked. "Keep telling yourself that. Now what did the tree want?"

"Oh…" He wasn't sure how to break this to Haizea. He was such an ill-tempered man after all. "Um, the Temple's under the castle."

Haizea nodded a nod that said he wasn't really paying attention, then he snapped his attention back to Link. There was a look of utter insult on his face. "_What?_" The anger in his voice was enough to boil water. "We came here for _nothing,_ then? I took abuse from that child for no reason?"

Link rolled his eyes and said, "You were the one that did the abusing. Mido didn't lay a finger on you." The slave merely glared at him. "You really need to get over yourself." The boy added. And then continued on to where he saw Navi's blue fairy-light at the entrance of the village.


	20. Wanted

Early update because I'm uploading too many chapters and I don't want to see my document space cluttered. Anyways, I'm sure you've noticed my name has changed. I changed it because I used to share the account but now it's all mine again. Everything's still the same.

* * *

Navi took them through the forest until they reached the edge. There she bid them farewell and went back to the Deku Tree. It was then that Link saw Navi had taken them to a different spot than when they first arrived. He didn't expect her to know it and he was glad. That broken down wall probably wasn't a safe zone. Still, they were nearby the town so it wouldn't be that long a walk. Within a few minutes they were back in the town. The general area they were in wasn't that busy, only a couple of people here and there but they were all staring. It seemed people liked to do that lately. Then Link saw why. He saw a poster on a wall and managed, perhaps, the most horrified, shocked look he ever made in his whole ten years of life.

Haizea then took a look at the poster. His face was blank, devoid of any emotion. If anything he seemed bored. The poster didn't change it. He just said, "Huh… So that is why we've been getting strange looks."

In nice big, bold letters the sign read:

**WANTED**

**For tearing down the Eastern Wall**

**Adult male, pale, average height**

**His suspected accomplice is a ten year old boy identified as Link, grandson of local sword instructor Kendo**

**If you seem them, report it to the nearest soldier! **

The poster was complete with sketches of their faces.

"I have to say, this sketch doesn't look a thing like me." Haizea said, still with the bored attitude.

"_That's_ what bothers you?! We're on wanted posters!" Link snapped, but not so loudly that a passerby would hear. He also didn't bother to mention that if the sketch didn't look like him, no one would be staring.

"Trivialities." The slave said. "I assure you, it's not the first time I've been on a wanted poster. You don't need to worry too much, no one actually reports you."

The boy just stared uneasily at his companion. He wasn't sure what was more disturbing: hearing that his current traveling companion had been on a wanted poster before and treating it like it was nothing, or the thought about _why_ Haizea had been on a wanted poster. What was even worse was that Link saw two soldiers coming their way.

"We need to go now…" Link said, making a movement with his head that was trying to say, "LOOK BEHIND YOU, IDIOT!" Haizea glanced behind him and saw the soldiers and made a very visible look of surprise.

"However, I have been wrong before, even if it rare…" He said, and began to walk calmly towards an alley. Link followed suit, a bit frightened about Haizea's calm attitude despite the surprise he had shown earlier.

"Shouldn't we be running?" He asked the man.

"No, no. Running would be a dead give away to the guards. Then they'd know that we're the ones they're looking for. When you walk, you have a better chance of blending in." The slave said.

Link never thought of it that way. Though he doubted it would work in this particular setting. There weren't that many people here to blend in with. Nonetheless, Link did notice that the pace of the soldiers did slow down. When they entered the alleyway and made the first turn then Haizea said, "Now we run." And he took off. Link grimaced. He was still fast… But there was no time to whine about it. He followed as best he could. Eventually, Haizea slowed, probably because of his lack of familiarity with the back roads of the town and the fact that they were nearby an open street, and then he just stopped.

Praise the goddesses for that.

Once again, the boy found himself barely able to breathe but the enslaved magician didn't look the slightest bit tired. Maybe his own endurance was just too low? Too tired to really focus on anything that wasn't breathing, he brushed it aside.

"You look like you're about to cough up a lung." Haizea said plainly.

"I feel like it…" Link managed to say. After he could breathe semi-normally, he decided he might as well get it over with. "Um… Haizea… since the next Temple is under the castle and… Well, I don't have access to where it might be so… I was thinking that it might be okay to… well, blast our way through…" Goddesses knew that the magician would only be too happy to do it…

The slave's look of surprise returned and then was replaced by his usual smug look. "Well, that's a shame now isn't it? Tearing down the wall, as much as I would prefer it, isn't our only option."

Haizea not wanting to blast his way through something? Was there something wrong with him?

The slave rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Oh don't act so surprised. Even I know when explosions aren't the answer." He said bitterly.

"Then what can we do, then?" Link said, feeling a bit bitter himself. After all, it was human nature not to like it when someone gave you attitude.

"Well, it's simple. You know someone in the castle." Once again, it was said plainly.

He knew someone in the castle? Huh?

The slave had a very annoyed look on his face. "Think hard."

He knew someone in the castle… There was his grandfather who would go there occasionally, but he doubted that was who Haizea meant. He knew the king, not well, but being friends with his daughter put them on sort of friendly terms. However, going to confront the king about what was really going on and telling him the whole situation… it wouldn't be a good idea. The man would probably send a whole fleet of ships to a place that he didn't even know the location to. Other people he knew in the castle… There was that maid… the linen maid who told Link about Zelda's disappearance. Rayeh? Yes, that was her name! She was friends with Zelda, despite the fact that she was a good ten or so years older than her. And since she was a linen maid, a woman who likely had access to the laundries in the basement, she could tell them if she saw anything! But wait…

"How do you know about Rayeh?" Link asked. Then, something very, very weird and unexpected happened. Haizea blushed.

"Erm… We've met, however briefly…" He said skittishly.

"When could you two have…" He answered his own question. That time when he had gone looking for clues about the Temple when they first arrived. He left the slave alone for a while; it's possible he could have met her then. But why was he acting so weird about it? He decided to leave it alone. No sense in trying to get in his head, he'd probably get even more confused. "Well, I don't know where she lives so we'd have to go to the castle to see her… But since we're on wanted posters… I don't know if we can go there."

"Ah, in need of my services again." Haizea said, now back to his normal self.

Link scowled. "We can't blow the place to bits looking for her."

The slave stared at the child for a moment, his face saying, "Are you serious?" he sighed what sounded like a sigh of disappointment and said, "I enjoy a simple, direct way of getting through an obstacle and you assume that destruction is the only thing I excel at. For your information, I happen to be very good at illusion."

"How's making people see stuff that aren't there going to help us? We need more than a distraction to get into the castle." Link said.

"Illusion just isn't making people see things that aren't there. It can also make others see other things differently, including other people." Haizea said matter-of-factly.

"Really?" Link asked. "How?"

Haizea then glanced around and spotted something. He bent down and picked up a feather, then stuck it in Link's hat. "Go walk in the street."

"Are you crazy?! There are soldiers out there! A feather isn't that drastic of a change!" Link cried.

The slave rubbed his forehead in frustration. "Just do it. I promise, the soldiers won't notice you."

Link frowned, not too sure if he could trust what the enslaved magician could say. He decided he might as well give it a shot. After all, the worst that would happen would be that he'd get caught and sent to a dungeon somewhere… He shouldn't have thought about that but it was too late, he was in the street now and a pair of soldiers were walking towards him. He visibly winced at the thought of being caught but the soldiers just walked past him without a second thought. "What just happened?" he asked to no one in particular.

"It was the illusion I cast you. No one's going to recognize you." Haizea was standing right next to him now. He could see a light shadow around the man of a different figure. He couldn't make anything out about the shadow and he wondered what it was. Then he remembered his hat. It protected him from illusion. "Your hat's working, I take it? Good." Haizea said, looking satisfied. The corners of his mouth turned a little in a small frown then and he squinted at something. "I should've made you a little taller…"

Link gave him a flat look and didn't bother to ask him about how he knew the hat's power. Something else was bothering him. While the soldiers had completely ignored him, other people glanced at him while they passed by. They ignored Haizea, they were staring at _him_, specifically. He could even hear a small group of girls saying something about being "cute." "What exactly did you turn me into?" He asked, dreading the answer. He wasn't sure if he wanted to know…

The slave just looked down at him, an evil and very satisfied smile plastered on his face. Then he just chuckled and said, "Nothing bad, if you must know. Just keep quiet and go along with anything I say."

_It may be nothing bad but somehow I don't think it's anything good either._ Link thought in his head.

Link led the way to the castle and was just about to walk past the guards when the two guards suddenly stepped in front of him, blocking the path. They looked down at Link and then looked at Haizea. "What's going on with this one?" One of them asked.

"I caught this young Scrub selling some faulty merchandise. Can't really do much since he's underage but I thought giving him a preview of the consequences for his actions might keep him from any more mischief." Haizea said. He was disguised as a soldier then…

Link winced as he felt a kick at the back of his leg. The slave gave him a sharp look and he got the message. "Hey! I'm telling you I didn't know those red potions were cranberry juice!"

The guards at the gate laughed and one of them said, "Yeah, yeah, kid, that's what they all say." He then looked at Haizea. "You can go through." Then the guards parted and the slave pushed Link through.

When they were far enough a way from the guards, Link turned on his heel and faced Haizea. "You made me look like a Deku Scrub!?"

Haizea was obviously enjoying the boy's reaction. "It worked, didn't it? But we don't have time for discussing such things. We need to find the maid."

Link grimaced. "I don't know her that well so I don't know where she is." He said with disappointment.

"It doesn't matter, I know how to get her to come to us." Haizea said. "I'll have to drop the illusions, though."

"Go ahead, I don't have a problem with it." Link said truthfully. A Deku Scrub… Why did it have to be a Deku Scrub? Why not something with a better reputation? Sure, not all of them were in business but it's what they were notorious for.

The slave picked the feather from the boy's hat and stuffed it in his pocket. Link felt something drop, most likely the spell. Link saw that the shadow around the magician had faded as well. "I really hope no one in this castle has seen those posters." Haizea grunted.

The boy hadn't thought of that. He hoped no one saw the posters too. For the most part, however, they did their best to stay out of sight. That was until a maid passed by, by the looks of it another linen maid. That was when Haizea walked up to her. Link couldn't make out what was being said, but the woman just nodded with a slight smile and left. Haizea walked back to where Link was and stood against the wall, seeming a bit anxious. "That maid's going to go get the other maid…"

"Her name's Rayeh, you know." So far, every time she had been brought up the enslaved magician only called her "maid."

"I know!" Haizea hissed.

Link flinched. Someone was rattled…

"Haizea!" It was a woman's voice. "And Link!" The boy turned to see Rayeh, who seemed very happy. "Link, your grandfather's been terribly worried about you! And I never knew you had a cousin! Ah, should I go get Master Kendo?"

"No!" Link blurted out. The maid blinked in surprise at Link. "It's just… I…"

The maid sighed. "You ran away to save Zelda without telling him, didn't you?" She said.

Link flushed and looked down at the floor. "You could say that…"

"Truth be told, he told his grandfather. So he actually ran away to save her against his wishes." Haizea said.

"Is that so…" Rayeh said. "Then I guess this is an informational visit more than a casual one." She seemed a bit sad when she said it.

"It's a bit of both, you could say." Haizea said, this time he was going slightly red in the face and he seemed adamant about not making eye contact with Rayeh.

The girl smiled a bit and then said, "Well, I guess we should go someplace more private." She then bent in closer to the two. "The King has forbidden any mention about the princess in the castle… If I'm to help you, we really can't talk out here." She whispered. She then looked back jumpily and stepped quickly into the main hall. "This way." She led them to the same place that she and Link had their last conversation in. The linen closet. Last time it was just two people, so it still had some space. This time there was three people, so it was a little cramped. Haizea made sure to stay away from Rayeh while they were stuck in there. Nonetheless, Link noticed that the slave still seemed very uncomfortable.

"Sorry about the lack of space…" Rayeh said. "Most linen maids don't use this closet that much… Um, but what do you need? I'll do the best I can to help."

"Well… it's a really long story…" Link said.

"Give her the short version." Haizea said, still looking rather ruffled.

"Well, first things first… Me and him," Link said, gesturing to both himself and his companion. "We're not cousins."

"I figured that much out. You two don't look at all alike." Rayeh said with a nod.

"He's helping me save Zelda." Link said. He half-expected to hear Haizea go, "But not willingly," in response. There was no snappy comment. "But in order to save Zelda we need to help three other girls."

"The Sirens to be exact." Haizea added. Link glared Haizea. He didn't want Rayeh to know that much. "She wants to help; she should at least know some of the details of what she's helping us with." He growled.

Link glared at him for a moment more then turned his attention back to Rayeh. He opened his mouth to say something when the maid said, "Wait, by Sirens you mean… the mermaids?"

"Yeah. We've already helped one out at the Zora's Domain but we don't really know where the other two places where they're at. But we got some information that one of the temples is here, under the castle. Me and Haizea can't look for it since we're not allowed in all the places in the castle." Link told her. "… And we're on the wanted list…" He added it real quietly, hoping the maid wouldn't catch it. She caught it.

"You two are _wanted_?! As in people want you in prison?!" She cried. "What on earth did you two do?"

"You just had to go and tell her…" Haizea muttered angrily.

Link ignored the slave and said, "You mean what did _he_ do! I was just added in on the poster because people saw me around him…"

"Yes, blame it on me! I'd like to have seen you come up with a better solution!" Haizea snapped.

"I told you we could've climbed!" Link snapped back.

"Yes, you told me _after_ I did it! A little sooner would've been better! But I still say my way was better!"

"You did it before I even had time to tell you! If you just-"

"Stop it!" Rayeh yelled. Both of them stared at her and then suddenly realized how stupid the whole thing was.

"Sorry you had to see that…" Haizea said before Link could, and that shocked him. Haizea apologize? Something had to be wrong with him.

"Listen it doesn't matter what happened…" She said tiredly, "So, you two want me to look for this Siren temple under the castle?"

"Please?" Link said.

The girl gave a small smile. "I'll do my best, but it might take a while. As I'm sure you know, the castle has many large basements. I won't find it right away and… I just don't think you two have the time to wait around on me…" She said gloomily.

She had a really good point now that Link really thought about it. But what else could they do? They didn't know where the third temple was and this was the best lead they had.

"By the look on the boy's face, it seems we'll be willing to wait." Haizea for Link.

Rayeh brightened up a bit. "Alright then, I'll do my best to find it as quickly as possible!" She said. "Oh and… If you don't mind me asking… What exactly did happen to get you two on wanted signs?"

"He blew up a wall." Link said flatly.

Haizea looked away and went red in the face again, as if he was embarrassed about Link telling Rayeh this. Why? Normally Haizea would be trying to justify it by now.

"He blew up a wall…" Rayeh repeated thoughtfully. Then she brightened up again. "Blew up with magic?"

"Yes…" Haizea grumbled.

"I love magic! Real magic, that is, not the stage type! It's amazing that you can wield such magic!" She said gleefully.

Both Link and Haizea looked at her in surprise.

"You think that's amazing?!" Link said probably in a more horrified tone than he would've liked.

"You don't mind that I blew up a wall?" Haizea asked almost excitedly.

Before Rayeh could answer either of them, the door to the closet opened. An older woman was in the doorway and eyeing the young maid angrily. "Club meeting is over." She said in a voice that would break bricks. "Get out, all of you, now."

They all exited the closet in single file. Both Link and Rayeh had their heads hung low in shame. Haizea seemed insulted that the older woman order him around. Link supposed he could understand why. The one he usually took orders from was a ten year old boy, and now this other person is ordering him around. He wouldn't like that either.

"You boys leave, now." The woman commanded. Link tried not to cringe. Haizea looked like he wanted to cause some carnage. "Rayeh, get back to work, now." The young woman just quickly bowed and scuttled off. The older maid gave the two one last glare and then took off herself.

Link and Haizea started making their way to the doors, the magician readying the illusion spells when Rayeh then ran over to them. She seemed a bit out of breath, probably because she had to take a round-about route to get where they were.

"I just remembered something…" She paused to catch her breath. "There's a ferry that goes to Wesna Island… I remember hearing something about a great temple there dedicated to an ocean spirit; it might be one of the Siren temples!" She said. "While I look for the one here, you can go there and save that Siren!"

"You'll be fine here? We didn't get you in trouble here?" Haizea asked. It was weird, because Link could've thought it was said in genuine concern.

"Huh? Oh, that old bat of a head maid… Don't worry about her, she looks mean but that's all she is. I think she was kind of surprised to see that it was an actual meeting than a…" She looked down at Link before she continued. "I'll be fine! Don't worry! Just save that other Siren! I promise that when you come back, you'll know exactly where the Temple here is!" Gosh darnit, she changed the subject because he was kid, didn't she?


	21. True Anger

Next chapter! Woohoo! I guess... Anyways, I was thinking of boosting the rating to M because... well, just watch out for a change in rating. Depending on how I write out the chapters, I might change it. So just keep it in mind.

* * *

Wesna Island was actually a pretty popular island. Link remembered seeing travel posters for the place all over town since even before his mother disappeared. It wasn't very big, only having two villages. There was Kakariko Village, which was mainly a trading outpost so it was naturally filled with traders of all sorts. The second village was the Goron village up on Death Mountain. That's really all there was to the place. Kakariko Village by the coast, a bit of empty land, and then a volcano.

Since they didn't have a boat anymore, he had Haizea get them a spot on a boat since no one seemed to treat Link seriously. He wouldn't treat himself seriously, either. He still had a hard time believing everything that was happening wasn't a dream. Everything was just so outrageous about this journey of his. A magician cursed by the goddesses, mermaids trapped in their own temples, a man from the desert hiding in the ocean with a princess he kidnapped, some mystical power that the bad guy wanted… It was something out of a fairytale and he was the hero. He could remember a time when he sometimes wished for adventure but now that he was on one, he really wished everything that was happening was a dream. If it was a dream than Zelda would be safe…

"Wake up. There's no time to be thinking about your little girlfriend." Sometimes, Link really hated the sound of Haizea's voice.

"She's not my girlfriend…" He had been saying it so many times lately it came out in a mutter. "Why are you in such a rush anyways?"

The slave flushed and looked away. "I am _not_ in rush…" It didn't sound very convincing.

"You're not a good liar." Well, at least not this time, Link thought.

Haizea glared at the boy with a strange mixture of anger and what seemed like embarrassment. "Even if I was in a rush, it's none of your concern!" He snapped.

Realization then began to dawn on Link. It was so obvious and the boy really couldn't help but start to burst out in laughter. He laughed even harder when he saw Haizea's reaction to the laughter.

"What are you laughing about?!" Haizea's tone was not just laced in anger, it was chock-full of it.

Link tried to respond but he couldn't stop laughing. And with each breath of laughter, the slave's glare intensified. Finally, the unending fit of laughter stopped.

"_What was so damned funny?_" Wow, Haizea was really angry.

Link couldn't help but smile. He giggled a little more and then finally said, "I know why you're so jumpy. And I can't believe it happened to a pervert like you."

"What are you talking about?!" The enslaved magician was very, very frustrated.

"It's written all over your face." Link said, mimicking the smirk the slave usually had plastered on his face at all times. "You _like_ Rayeh."

Everything happened in what seemed like a flash. Link heard a woman scream, people gasp. It took the boy at least ten seconds to realize what had just happened in the blink of an eye. His own sword was practically on him. He could feel the point at his throat and every time he inhaled, the point dug deeper into his flesh. Haizea had the sword in his hand, and he had a look of pure anger on his face. Link remembered the time at the forest, when the slave first saw Saria. That feral look in his eyes… the look that wanted to see blood. It was there again, but Link knew that the slave definitely knew what he was doing. And that was what scared him.

"Say that again." The slave hissed. "I _dare_ you to say that again. And if you do, know that regardless of what happens to me…" He didn't go on. He didn't need to go on. The boy knew exactly what the end of that sentence was: "I will end you." Link held up his arms in surrender. Haizea kept his stance for a moment, the glare still boring itself into the child's mind, and then he dropped the sword and walked away toward where their boat was.

A woman then ran up to Link, asking if he was okay. People were whispering, staring. Link just picked up his sword, still baffled as to how the magician had gotten it so fast, and sheathed it. He'd gotten Haizea angry before-it wasn't that hard to do-but this… that was real anger. The type of anger that said he had wanted to see blood. Haizea had even taken Link's sword, something which he had said he clearly did not like. It was just scary. Scarier than the dragon at Molpe's Temple…

Uh-oh. Molpe. He had never reported to her. She was going to be scary too…

He pushed his way out of the crowd that had seemed to surround him and went towards the nearest dock. He purposefully strayed away from the boat that he was going to have to get on later. He wanted to avoid the slave for the time being. He looked at the water, seeing nothing that indicated the Siren's presence. Then he felt a splash of water on his backside. He jumped up and turned quickly. Molpe's head peeked up ever so slightly from the water. He could only see her eyes, really. That was good, he supposed, less people would see her that way.

"Um… We couldn't find the Temple here on the land…" He said reluctantly.

Water sprayed on his face. He wiped it off. Mople's head was now completely over the water and she didn't look very happy. She lifted herself part way onto the wood of the deck. Link did his best to hide her from view by standing in front of her. She flailed one of her arms around, pointing towards the crowd or any general area where there was people. He think he understood what she was saying.

"He's not in a very good mood." Link told her. She stared at him flatly. "Well, you're right, he's never in a good mood but I really, really got him angry. Seriously, I've never seen him this angry before. He was going to kill me!"

Molpe's facial expression then changed from anger to that of surprise and concern.

"I don't want to talk about it…" Link said. "But we do know where the temple is just not exactly where… if that makes any sense…"

Now she looked a bit… let down.

"Well, it's just that it's under the castle and we don't have access to where it is. Don't give me that look! We have someone looking for it…" Memories of the earlier encounter flooded Link's brain again. He shuddered. He was never, ever going to even mention that maid around Haizea again. "Anyways… we heard that the next Temple is on Wesna Island. We're going there on…" He looked around and found the ship. "On that boat there!" He pointed.

Molpe nodded and then lowered herself back into the water.

"Oh, and one more thing…" Link said, getting back her attention. "I really, _really_ don't think you should try talking to him." She gave a small, tired smile and nodded. Then she disappeared back into the water.

When he arrived at the boat, one of the crewmembers asked if he was with the really peeved pale guy. That's how Link knew he was on the right boat. Sure enough, when he went up the cat-walk, he saw Haizea leaning against the boat railing, staring off into nothing and keeping a very angered look on his face. He would make it a point to stay at least five feet away from that general area.

"He hasn't moved an inch since he first got there." The crewmember told him. "I don't think the guy's even blinked…"

Link could do nothing but laugh feebly. There was nothing much else that he could do. In his mind, he was still seeing the demon-faced version of Haizea. The one that held a sword up to his neck and had no qualms about lopping his head off.

Simply to avoid even accidentally wandering over to where the still angered magician was, Link just went down below the deck. There weren't any cabins for passengers, Link knew that much. They were starting to get low on rupees, so they were on a rather… shady boat. This kind of transportation, sticking all the passengers down below deck in a cramped space, it was supposed to be illegal. But it was cheap. And Link didn't really understand how cramped it was going to be until he got there. He had never felt more claustrophobic in his life. And he wasn't claustrophobic. It was also very noisy. Still, however cramped and loud it was, he still didn't want to go up to the deck. He eventually heard all the crew members yelling and shouting above on the deck. One even came down and told them they were finally leaving.

The boat swayed with the water, side to side. Some people even slid and crashed into one another. Despite all the sliding, there weren't any fights or anything like that. People would just apologize and then go about their business. He wondered if it was because people got in trouble if they picked fights on boats? Probably. However, since he was small and light, he was one of the people that crashed into another. He found himself crashing right into a man with a big pack on his back.

"I'm sorry!" Link said as soon as he crawled off the man.

"No, no, it's alright!" Said the man, a jittery looking fellow with glasses. "This happens to me a lot, actually…" His voice was small and quiet.

"Happens to you a lot?" Link asked.

The man, probably in his late teens, just flushed and nodded embarrassedly. "Yes… Misfortune seems to plague me wherever I go." He said.

"Wow, that really sucks…" The boy said.

"I've gotten used it." The man said with a shrug, but his voice was still quiet. "Say… you look familiar… I'm sure that I've never seen you before, though."

Link blinked for a moment. He got a good look then at the man's face. Aside from looking younger than he probably was, he looked familiar to him too. It was the ears that really screamed as though he had seen them before. Pointed, but not as long as Hylian ears and the ears were furry, like a cat's. He was sure he'd seen ears like that before but he couldn't place it. "Same here…"

Then the jittery man froze and then took on a somewhat guilty look. "Oh, I'm sorry. I never introduced myself. I'm Evan, a traveling book collector." He said, patting his large pack.

So that's why that pack felt so hard, the boy thought. "Um, I'm Link… Just a kid on a mission." He said to Evan.

"On a mission? Sounds dangerous." Evan said.

"Hey, just because I'm a kid doesn't mean I can't do things adults can!" He protested.

Evan just smiled. "I was just commenting on it. I have no doubts that you can do a dangerous mission. I'm on one myself, actually, though I don't think it's quite as dangerous as yours." He said.

A book collector on a dangerous mission? Link tried not to laugh. "It is pretty dangerous. I've already had to fight a dragon." The boy said. Hey, even he needed a little bragging time.

"A dragon? Wow. Where I come from, no one's beaten a dragon…" Evan said. "If you don't mind my asking, what kind of mission are you on?"

"I'm trying to save a friend of mine." Link said truthfully. "What kind of mission are you on?"

Evan suddenly looked down at the floorboards guiltily. "I'm on a similar mission… Except he was my teacher…" He said very, very quietly.

Link just stared for a moment. The poor guy was just staring at the floorboards guiltily, looking as if the world was going to end. "H-hey, I'm sure you'll find him!" He said, trying to be reassuring.

Evan gave a weak smile. "I hope so… It's my fault, if I don't find him…" The man then looked down at the floorboards again and gave a depressed sigh.

"You'll find him! Don't worry! I'm sure you'll find him!" Link said.

Evan once again gave a weak smile, but this one had a little more meaning in it. "Thank you… I'm sure you'll find your friend too."

Link smiled back. "Yeah, we'll find our friends."

"AH!" Evan suddenly exclaimed.

"A wha?" Link managed after the sudden outburst.

The man took off his glasses and then took a closer look at the boy. Wow, he looked really familiar now but Link just couldn't place him. "Yes, I know where I remember you from! Or rather where I don't remember you from… That's not the point! I know where I've seen your face before!" The man said excitedly.

"Huh?"

"There's a woman on the island this boat is heading to. I've been coming and going from here, so I've seen her many times! The woman on the island, she looks a lot like you!" Evan said.

A woman who looked like him? A woman… No… No, it couldn't be, it was just a coincidence… Was it? "Um, do you know her name?" Link asked.

Evan put his glasses on again and looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "I'm sorry." He said shaking his head. "I don't know her name. Is she the one you're looking for?"

"No." Link said. "Mostly curiosity." He lied. _She might be another person I know…_

* * *

Evan is also another one of my OCs from an original story. I actually never planned on throwing him into this but he managed to sneak his way in... like a ninja. Kidding aside, Evan is just a complete klutz. His character actually spawned from another personality in another one of my Zelda fanfics (kudos if you know who's personality he spawned off of). I just liked the personality so much, when the character discarded it later in the story, Evan was created. He's just way too cute! X3 So... um... That's all.


	22. Confessions

Another chapter for you peoples, cuz I'm feeling nice. It isn't really an early chapter (since it's still Thursday), but uh... here ya go. Well, I can't say if it's a sure thing yet, it's only been two weeks really, but it looks like there may be a baby wandering around my house... Don't give me that look, I'm not the one that's pregnant. My sister is. So that means I'm going to be an aunt. Yay me! Does this mean I'm gonna have to learn to change a diaper?... Ew...

* * *

The sounds of snoring could be heard all throughout the cargo hold but that wasn't what woke him up. What woke him up was the heaviness of his bladder. He had to go badly. But where was a bathroom on a ship like this. He looked over to the side to see Evan snoring softly on his bulky pack of books. He felt guilty about it, but he nudged the man until he was at least half-awake.

"Hey, Evan…"

The man's head jutted straight up, hair disheveled and just overall looking like he was still asleep. "Wha?"

"Um, do you know where the bathroom is?" Link asked.

Evan yawned and shook his head. "On ships like this… there are no… bathrooms…" He mumbled.

"No bathrooms?" The boy said. "Then where do I go to… go?"

The sleepy man rubbed at his head and looked around. His head plopped back down onto his pack, which Link assumed might have heard given its contents, and Evan pointed towards the door that led to the deck. "Over the side…" Said the man's muffled voice.

Over the side? He seriously had to pee over the side of the boat? Ew. He was beginning to regret drinking all that water before he got on the boat. He found himself not caring as much, though; the faster he peed, the faster he could go back to sleep. He got up and walked towards the door of the cargo hold, trying not to step on people on the way out. He didn't completely succeed in avoiding people but he did make it out. He yawned and looked around.

The sky was cloudless, he could easily see the stars and the moon, which cast a bluish glow around the whole ship. There wasn't a soul on deck, except for Haizea who was still in his same spot by the railing. Still having enough sense to stay away, Link wandered over to the opposite side of the deck and relieved himself. When he was finished, and feeling much better, he made his way back to the door to the cargo hold.

"Child."

Link almost jumped out of his boots when he heard Haizea speak. He reluctantly turned to look at the man; he was still staring out at the ocean, he hadn't moved an inch. At first he thought the magician had simply not spoken at all.

"I did speak." With that, Haizea's head turned slightly to glance at Link. He still didn't look too happy, but then he turned back to the ocean. "I would like to… apologize… for my behavior earlier."

It took a few moments for Link to associate those words with Haizea. Did he just apologize? "Did… did you just apologize?"

"Don't rub it in!" Haizea snapped, turning on his heel to glare at Link. Then, he took a deep breath and lost the glare, saying, "I admit I may have… overreacted…"

"Overreacted? Ya think?" His fear of Haizea had gone away. Now he was getting angry.

"Alright, I did overreact but only because… You were probably right…" The last part came out in a mutter and the boy had to admit, it wasn't what he expected to hear. He expected to hear something more in the form of someone screaming from a distance that hell had frozen over. Still, even more infuriating was that Haizea was willing to kill him simply because he may have been right about him crushing on Rayeh?

Yes, there was certainly even more rage swelling up the boy. "What the… What the _hell_?!"

Haizea sneered. "Of course _you_ wouldn't understand. You're in the same predicament I'm in; except for me it's a bit more… problematic."

"What do you mean I'm in the same… whatever that word you said?! And even if I was, how would it be more of a problem for you?!" Link snapped.

The slave just laughed bitterly. "Like I said, you wouldn't understand."

"Well then start talking!" Link yelled. He knew the magician was right. He didn't understand, but he wanted to have a reasonable reason why Haizea would get angry enough to be willing to slice him up.

The man forked an eyebrow. "Talk? Hmph. Nonsense." He then turned back to the rail, facing the waves.

"No." Link said. He thought he may have twitched a bit when he said it. "You have to be the most horrible person I know! You're a huge pervert with no respect for anyone! You're just a… a big jerk! And you're right, there's no way I can possibly even start to understand you but I want to know why you would be willing to chop my head off just for a simple comment!"

The slave's head turned slightly, giving Link a flat look. "You sound like a woman." He said plainly, then turned back to whatever he was staring at.

"See?! There's the jerk!" The boy shouted.

"Hmph." Was the only response given.

"I'm not leaving." Link said.

"Fine then…" Haizea said. He took a deep breath and let it out. It was quiet for a moment. "The goddesses cursed me… I can't even remember why. I know some part of it was because of my lecherous habits-the goddesses are women, naturally they would be offended that I take advantage of their own kind-so one of my curses was my curse of abstinence. I can never touch a woman for the rest of my life without harm coming to me."

"Yeah, that's probably the best thing for the girls you meet." Link scoffed.

Haizea rolled his eyes and gave the boy another flat look. "Are you going to listen or interrupt every time your morals kick in?"

"Sorry…"

"Anyways, lechers like me… We never take a woman seriously, especially after the deed is done. So when I met the maid… Rayeh… I was disturbed-I still am-because I've never reacted to a woman in such a way! And now… I can't think clearly because I don't understand why! For the longest time I was convinced that I could never fall to the charms of a woman but now… _Me _even considering a woman to be just a little more than a woman… It's confusing… And irritating…"

Link thought over what the slave said for a moment. "Then how am I in the same boat as you-pun not intended-?" He asked.

"You like your princess." Haizea responded nonchalantly as he began to lean back on the railing now. "Of course, for you it could be much different now that I think of it…"

"See! Now you know I don't like her that!" Link said, still feeling the blood rushing in his face.

"Oh, so you agree."

"Of course I agree-"

"So you _are_ in love with your princess. Isn't that cute?" Haizea smirked.

Love? _Love?_ Link flushed. "I definitely don't like her like that!"

Haizea shrugged, as if defeated. "If you say so and I guess I know why. She _is_ a princess; they normally aren't as pretty as people make them out to be. And she's probably spoiled beyond all belief."

"You're wrong! Zelda is the prettiest and most modest girl I know!" Link blurted out. He caught himself and if his face could get redder, it certainly would have.

The slave had a very satisfied smile on his face. "And now you've proven my point."

He didn't have anything to say that could counter that. He opened and closed his mouth, trying to find something to say but he couldn't.

"B-but… I don't…" Suddenly, it was becoming harder to say "I don't like her like that" because… Well… Haizea could be right…

Then, to interrupt their conversation-and, thankfully, his train of thought- there was a splash from the water. The enslaved magician grimaced and then glanced at the water. Molpe was talking to him. Link walked over and leaned over the railing slightly, seeing Molpe just staring up at the magician. Something the boy always wondered about the conversations between the two was how it was done. There was no actual speech involved, he noticed. Occasionally, Haizea would say something out loud but nothing that would give away the nature of the conversation. But before he could get into really deep thought about how they conversed Haizea interrupted with a loud, "_What_?!"

"What did she say?" Link asked. He didn't like the tone of the slave's voice. It wasn't angry or anything it was more like alarmed. Something he didn't take as a good sign.

Haizea merely held up a hand to Link which said "shut up and wait." The conversation apparently ended when Molpe retreated back into the water. With a grim look on his face the slave said, "It appears this ship is being followed."

"Okay…? This is bad?" Link asked.

"A ship being followed by another ship is not usually a good sign, unless it's a fleet or squad or some such nonsense. But this ship isn't part of a larger faction. Also, the ship that's following us has a skull and crossbones on its sails." The slave said.

"A skull and crossbones… like pirates?" Link asked, a little bit of eagerness in his voice. He'd never seen real pirates before.

"Yes, like pirates… and they're coming really fast."

"Really? How do you know?" Link asked.

"Because I can make out the silhouette of a ship behind you." Haizea's voice was tense. Link turned and saw the silhouette the slave mentioned. It was coming fast. Wow! They were really being chased by pirates!

"Stop smiling like that!" Haizea yelled at him.


	23. The Gerudo Pirates

What kind of story involving the ocean would be complete without pirates? None. that's the answer. So I added pirates. Unfortunately, these aren't the pirates from WW. A more accurate guess would be the pirates from another Zelda game...

God damn, all these early updates. I've just been writing this story out way too fast for my own good. So I'm going to update it twice a week. Mondays (like today) and Thursday.

* * *

"Oh… sorry." Link said, but the smile wouldn't drop. Pirates! How many people could say they were chased by pirates!?

"This is not some little game!" Haizea snapped at the boy. "Once they find out this ship has nothing of value on it they're going to sink it!"

Oh… The boy never thought about that. The panic was setting in. "If they sink us… we'll drown…" Link thought out loud.

"Sharp, aren't you?" The slave hissed. His gaze had not moved from the ship.

"Well… can't you do something?! Use some sort of magic spell or something?!" Link cried out.

"It's too far to do any real damage. By the time they get close enough and I can do something, they'll happily respond with their cannons." He said grudgingly.

The panic was rising. There had to be something that could be done! "Then wind!" Link shouted, now remembering the magic that the magician seemed to excel in. "You used to blow boats out of the way when you lived with Dietrich!"

"I would commend you for your smarts but, unfortunately, you're a few decades too late." Haizea muttered.

"Huh? What do you mean decades?" Link asked hesitantly.

"A previous master of mine once told me I was capable of creating cyclones that could wipe a boat off the face of the earth." Link brightened up a bit when the slave said that. However, it darkened when the slave finished by saying, "I can't say I remember a time like that. The most I could do now is create a wind to speed up this boat."

"Then why don't you?!" Link cried, his panic now manifesting in his voice.

"I would if it wouldn't speed up their ship too!" Haizea replied, seeming kind of panicked himself. "We have to wake the captain…"

"What can he do?" The boy asked.

"I don't know! But chances are he knows more about this than we do!" Haizea shouted.

* * *

"Women and children down in the cargo hold." Link imitated the voice of the captain in a nasally voice. He enjoyed being a kid, he really did, but sometimes he wished he was an adult. Now, he was in the cargo hold with two older women, one of them trying to coo a newborn back to sleep through all the ruckus going on above. One thing was for sure, there was a lot going on up there. Some of the cloths on the grates to the ceiling of the hold were slipping off, revealing one heck of a fight… and he couldn't do anything! He felt completely worthless down there and it really ticked him off.

The door to the cargo hold opened and shut quickly. Link drew out his sword and stood in front of the stairwell. The two women from before cringed back to the wall, the one with the baby holding it closely as it cried. There were two people judging from the sounds of the footsteps, and they were in a rush. Link was ready for them. He caught sight of the first person and went to make a slashing motion but stopped at the last second when, "_Watch it, boy._" Such a familiar sneer. Haizea stood there looking a bit rattled, but other than that he looked like his normal annoyed self. With the back of his hand he reluctantly pushed the flat of the blade aside so the sword was no longer facing him.

"Hey, what just happened? I think I heard a sword…" Came another familiar voice. This one was quiet and shaky. The sounds of some footsteps and then Evan tumbled on down the stairs. Haizea only took a step to the right to avoid Evan's fall. The woman who wasn't holding a baby went to check on the furry eared man.

"Why are you two down here?" Link asked, sheathing his sword.

"The clumsy one there as ordered to by the captain." Haizea said.

Evan sat up straight and gave a nervous smile. "It seems I'm not much of a good fighter…"

Link nodded in understanding. The man didn't seem to be able to take two steps without falling over himself so he didn't expect him to be a good fighter. A multitude of bruises confirmed it further. Then Link looked back up at Haizea. "What's your story?" He asked, a bit annoyed. It was probably cowardice, especially since he didn't look like he was even fighting.

"Hmph…" Haizea gave a glare upwards, to the grates at the ceiling. Most likely his glare was intended to reach the pirates. "Our pirate attackers are all women. There's nothing I can do. I can't cast a spell without chancing touching one of them."

Or it could be that… Link thought. "So then what are we going to do?" He asked.

"We'll just have to stay here until it ends." The slave said simply.

"Stay here? But-"

"No, he's right, Link." It was Evan. Behind his glasses were a pair of serious eyes. He didn't look unsure, like he normally seemed to, and his voice came out strong. "We don't stand a chance against them as we are. I'm a total spaz, your companion there seems overly chivalrous, and these ladies here simply can't go up there."

The boy gritted his teeth. He hated feeling so helpless… But Evan and Haizea were right. The best thing would be to just wait until the whole situation ended. Then, a thought came to Link. "But what if the pirates win?" He asked with a tremble in his voice.

The only sounds were the sounds of battle from above and the crying of the baby in the woman's arms. He knew what the silence met. Well, he knew what it meant for everyone else. As for himself, he needed to save Zelda. He'd manage to live somehow. He needed to save Zelda! Because she was a friend, though… Not… not anything else…

It couldn't be told how long after the grim conversation when the clanging of the weapons stopped. The door to the hold opened and people could be heard speaking as they walked down the steps. Girl voices to be exact. The only girls that should be on the ship were the women with them right now. Link grimaced.

"Hey, looks like they kept the women and kids here. Cowards too." The woman said it just as she was taking the last step down. two other ladies followed her, but she seemed to be the leader. She had a strange looking sword at her hip, which Link imagined couldn't be very comfortable. It was dark in the hold, but Link could still make two things out about the woman. Her skin was dark and her hair was red. A Gerudo, people from the desert… Just like Ganondorf. He gave her an ugly look and took out his sword. The woman just gave a small smile, as if she thought it cute. "Well, well, well, looks like a kid with a sword and an attitude."

Link kept his dark look focused on her.

The woman blinked in surprise. "Not scared, eh? You must have some real drive, then." She said.

"We don't have anything of value." Evan told the woman.

The Gerudo woman shrugged. "That's what they all say, but there's always something." She unsheathed her sword and pointed it at them. "Now, start dropping whatever you have on you."

Link growled and before he knew what he was doing, he charged straight at her. From the look on her face, she wasn't expecting it. She just barely managed to put up her sword in a defensive position. But he never made it to her. At the last second, he felt something grab at his back and pull him. "Lemmego, lemmego! They're Gerudo! I gotta get them! _Let me go_!" Link cried out, flailing around so wildly, he hadn't noticed he dropped his sword.

"Get a hold of yourself!" Haizea hissed. He was the one holding the wild child back. "They likely have nothing to do with Ganon! Calm down!"

"Get them!" The leader of the Gerudo troop called out to her cohorts angrily. "Take those two to the brig! Leave the other ones, we're just taking them!"

"Yes, sir!" Her cronies said. And then they rushed over. They seized Haizea first, which wasn't that hard to do. With a touch, the man screamed and passed out. Link was a bit harder to handle since he was still flailing. Evan was caught in the crossfire when he jumped on one of the Gerudo to try and help. They merely threw him aside. The woman with the baby crouched in the corner with her friend while trying to shield her infant from the violence. Soon enough, they had the boy subdued and they carried the two up the stairs onto the deck. The Gerudo leader called for assistance. Link, somewhat back to his senses, managed to see what became of the rest of the people of the ship. All unconscious or tied up. He began to flail again. He wouldn't let them get away with this! He felt a sharp pain over his head, and then shadows started to creep into his vision until he couldn't see anymore.

He woke up with his head feeling sore. Wherever he was, it wasn't bright, so when he opened his eyes it didn't hurt. It was damp, that much he could tell. The humidity was so thick, the air actually felt gross. He could also tell he didn't have his sword anymore. Still a bit groggy, he looked around. He was in a cell. From the creaking and groaning around him, it would be more accurate to say he was in the brig. It would explain the lack of lighting. He looked around his cell and saw Haizea in the corner. He was awake and looking quite miffed. "Where are we?" He asked the slave.

"We're on the ship of those pirates." Haizea growled.

Link looked around again. All the other cells were empty. "They only took us?"

"Seems that way."

How strange. Why would they take them and no one else? Link was just a kid and Haizea was… Well… Haizea was Haizea. What more could be said? They weren't exactly the type of people to be on a pirates list of valuable people.

A door opened somewhere and soon enough they could see the woman from before stopping in front of their cell. She had one of those fake insincere smiles. "All awake, are we? Good." She said. "When I open this door, you two are going to cooperate, kay?"

"And what if we don't?" Link asked bitterly.

"If you don't," Her insincere smile then just turned into a foul grin. "Then I'll have to force you to cooperate. So I'd suggest just coming along quietly." Link just gave her a dirty look.

"My, my, if looks could kill." She went back to her insincere smile and took a ring of keys from her swordless hip. She unlocked the cell door and opened it wide, even stepping out of the way to allow them room to leave. He thought about just running away from there, but where would he go? He doubted this ship and the ship they were on before were still side by side. He got up grudgingly and left the cell. Haizea followed suit. When they were out, the woman closed the door and said, "Follow me. And don't get any ideas."

She led them out of the brig and onto the deck. There, the other members of the crew were busying themselves with maintaining the ship but they all stopped to glance at the two prisoners when they passed by. As he glanced at all the pirates, he realized Haizea wasn't kidding when he said all the pirates were women. They really were. They were all Gerudo women. And the sight of them was making Link's temper rise.

"Boy." His head swerved to Haizea, staring at him sternly. He shook his head at the child, and Link knew what he meant. He was telling him to drop it, but he didn't want to drop it. These girls were all Gerudo. That made them the same as Ganondorf in his eyes. Except pretty and girly.

She took them to a door which led to the Captain's Quarters. She didn't bother to knock, she just walked in. When her prisoners didn't follow her she said harshly, "Get in here." They grudgingly entered.

This room was very delicate looking. It may have been highly sexist of him for thinking so, but the place just seemed so fit for a girl. Even any decorative blades on the walls of the room seemed just ridiculously feminine, probably because they were the blades normally associated with girls. For a minion of evil, he expected something a little more frightening and a little less warm. The Gerudo captain sat in front of a table with large map on it, certain places marked or scribbled on. Like the other Gerudo on board, she was a pretty lady with dark skin and red hair.

"So, a kid and a somewhat effeminate looking guy… Are you sure about these two?" The captain asked the woman who took them there. Link noted the look of irritation on Haizea at the mention of "effeminate looking guy."

"Yes, sir. I heard it with my own ears. The pale one said _his_ name." The woman said.

The captain leaned back on her chair and a look of thoughtfulness came upon her. After a moment she shrugged and said, "I guess you can't judge people on looks alone." Then she finally addressed Link and Haizea. "So, how do you two know Ganondorf?"

"Why should we tell you?" Link made no effort to hide the contempt in his voice.

The Gerudo captain smiled. "Because if you're a spy sent by him, we'll have to kill you where you stand." She said cheerfully.

Link was about to blow up there, but Haizea grabbed and quickly covered his mouth. "Then I can assure you, we are not his spies." He said.

"And how can I know you're telling the truth?" The captain asked.

Then Haizea released Link. "Are you kidding?! _Us_ be spies for Ganondorf?! I hate him! IhatehimIhatehimIhatehim!" Link screamed. "When I find him I'll… I'll…. ARGH!" Then the boy proceeded to stomp on the floor wildly in anger.

The captain just stared blankly at the sight, as did her underling. She then turned to Haizea who merely told her, "He stole his girlfriend."

"_She's not my girlfriend!_" Link said with a glare.

"Keep telling yourself that." The slave taunted.

Link glared again. Then he took a deep breath and said one word, "Rayeh."

Haizea was back to being the angry one. "Shut up!"

"Both of you shut up!" It was the captain. She was on her feet now, hands slapped down on the table. "Goddesses, you argue like four year olds!"

It was quiet for a moment and then, "He started it." Haizea said, pointing at Link, who merely grumbled something inaudible.

"Whatever…" The captain said with a sigh as she lowered herself back onto her chair. "From reactions like that, there's really not much to doubt. I believe you two when you say you don't work for Ganondorf." She looked at Link. "Especially you, kid. Now if you don't mind my asking what did he do to you two?"

"He didn't do anything to me." Haizea said plainly. "But certain circumstances require me to help the boy, here."

"So he took your girlfriend?" The captain asked Link.

The boy shot her a nasty look. "She's _not _my girlfriend. She's just a friend... And the princess of Hyrule…"

The captain then chuckled. "So he kidnapped the princess of Hyrule… I didn't actually think he had the balls to do it." She said. "I guess this means you guys are trying to save her, then."

Haizea shrugged. "He is. I personally don't care what befalls her, but, as I said before, certain circumstances require me to help the boy." He said. Link shot him a dirty look this time but Haizea only responded by saying, "It's true."

"Well, whatever." The captain said, wringing her wrist in a "moving on" motion. "No doubt, in the process of going to rescue the princess you two must messing up his plans, right?" It was said with much gusto.

"That's more than likely." The slave replied. Link just nodded along with it.

"Then congratulations, boys!" The captain said happily. "These pirates are willing to help!"

"Really?" Link blurted out.

The pirate captain nodded her head in the fashion of a happy teenage girl. She opened her mouth to say something but Haizea wouldn't let her. "Hold it. Receiving assistance from pirates is all well and good but a pirate is a pirate. What's the catch?" He asked.

The captain seemed taken aback. "Pirates aren't as greedy as the rumors say. Not of all of us at least. We're helping you simply because we have one thing in common: We hate Ganondorf. Well, at least me and the kid do."

"Um, why do you hate Ganondorf so much?" Link interrupted. "I mean, you're all Gerudo, right?"

The captain blinked at Link for a moment, as if the question came out of the blue. "Hmph, just like all pirates aren't greedy, not all Gerudo share the same views." She said, crossing her arms. "We Gerudo are made up of only women. A man is born once every century into our race and Gerudo law dictates that he be King of the Gerudo. That was fine and dandy at first until some of us realized what exactly that guy was up to. He's a rotten egg, through and through. Of course, me and my little group here weren't exactly on Ganondorf's good side for opposing him… so we defected. We eventually came out here and turned to piracy, in hopes it would somehow rain on his parade. We already knew he was planning to take the Sirens. So far, I think we've just been an annoyance, but now we finally have a chance to really get him!"

"It wouldn't happen to have anything to do with the legends of vast, untold amounts of treasure within the Sirens' stronghold, would it?" Haizea said, giving her a suspicious look.

The captain froze for a minute and then gave a sly smile. "That might have a little to do with it…" She said. "But at the same time, I think by helping you two, we'd really get on Ganondorf's nerves. I just have a few questions for you…"

"Then ask." Haizea told her.

"You know how weird it is to hear that a kid and a girly looking guy are causing more damage than a group of pirates? Just a few days ago, one of my patrol ships, which I thought had been lost at sea when that weird hurricane hit, came back. Apparently, after the hurricane Ganondorf and his followers took the ship someplace. They couldn't say exactly where because they didn't know, but it was probably the Ocean Fortress. The point is they only managed to escape, with a limited memory of what exactly happened, because apparently he lost some of his power. The only thing that they can recall clearly is him yelling about how a Siren managed to escape. Now would you two happen to know anything about that?" She asked.

"We might know something…" Link muttered.

"What he means is there's probably a fish woman following this ship as we speak." Haizea said.

"Thought so. At first we thought a Zora was following us but then we noticed it has hair. We were actually about to harpoon it but then she just disappeared." She said, giving an embarrassed smile. "Guess I should be glad we didn't harpoon her…"

The slave then snorted. Link only caught "She's not going to be happy…" but he had a good idea that a certain mermaid would be complaining to someone later.

"Anyways, since we're going to be working together to ruin Ganondorf, I suppose we should be on a first name basis." The pirate captain said.

"Oh, yeah. I'm Link. The jerk is Haizea." The boy said.

"That's _mister_ jerk." The slave told him. Haizea made a funny. Link tried to hide the look of shock on his face.

"Link and Haizea, eh? My name's Nabooru, but to both of you it'll be Captain."


	24. Challenge

I spoil you guys but I'm really enjoying writing this. I seriously am. I don't think I've ever enjoyed writing something this much. But what can I say, this story is really fun to write.

The reason behind this early update is because I'm going on a cruise. I'm not sure if I'll be able to stick to the update schedule this week for that for that reason. There will still be an update Thursday (technically tomorrow) but Monday I'm not so sure, so in case I can't update Monday, you get this chapter. If I can still update Monday... Well... then this is a normal early chapter.

* * *

After the introductions, Link told Nabooru the whole story, or what she needed to know at least. He was surprised to see she believed everything. He knew that most people would think it was just a colorful story, but at the same time this was a woman who did know Ganondorf on what seemed to be a personal note. Link tried asking her about it, despite Haizea's insistence on not to do so. He probably should've listened to the slave, because the Gerudo woman would simply say it was none of his business. She did say that she would get them to Wesna Island, however; and faster than the other ship would've taken them there to boot. Nabooru claimed to be in possession of one of the fastest ships on the sea. That sounded good to him, so he had no problems with it.

For the meantime while they were on their way to Wesna, Nabooru had them doing chores. Haizea was lucky and managed to get a job that kept him away from most of the crew. Surprisingly enough, it was cooking. Apparently, none of the women on board knew how to cook well. One of the ladies even claimed that she swore something they ate once was alive when served, but dead when it first came. Link still worried, though. He didn't know if the slave could cook, mostly because he didn't eat much to begin with.

Link had received possibly the most clichéd job a boy could receive on a boat: mopping the deck. He didn't complain; it was just mopping after all. If they told him to fight another dragon, then that would be a different story. It was almost laughable. Before that, he probably would be complaining about this. It was a little irritating when the crew decided to be a bunch of jerks and purposefully dirty the deck. And they said some pretty un-nice things too. Girls were mean…

Well, Zelda wasn't.

Zelda…

The conversation he and Haizea before the pirates came crept up on him. It was enough to make him shudder really. He'd never thought of her as more than friend. It was still kind of weird to think of her as anything more than that. The fact was he wasn't sure what he thought about her anymore. She was still a friend that much was for sure. A very precious friend. They'd grown up together-almost every single memory Link had included Zelda in it. Ugh, thoughts like this… They should be for teenagers not kids…

The next few days seemed to go by fast. During those days, Link learned a few things. He learned that Haizea was actually a pretty decent cook. He learned that girls had a "special" time of the month that could make them utterly unreasonable. He also learned that larger sailboats needed a lot more work put into them the raggedy little skiff he had before. When he wasn't mopping the deck, Nabooru actually had him working on helping fix problems with the ship. Their arrival at Wesna Island was a blessing to him. The last thing he wanted to do was try and pick off anymore barnacles growing on the inside of the ship. He was actually looking forward to getting back on the land and asking around for any large temple-like structures. Before they actually got the island, though, Nabooru had them change their sails and flag to that of a regular white. "It's better not to stand out in a place that you're not going to plunder." She'd say. It sounded good to him, so he actually didn't mind putting in a bit of extra effort for it. After the all, the faster it got done, the faster they could get to the island.

As soon as the new sails were up, they continued on to the docks of the island. When the catwalk was up, he and Haizea made for the town. Halfway down, however, someone called out, "Hey! Wait for me!" It was the captain, sporting more casual attire than her normal captain's clothes and hooking a pair of daggers onto each side of her belt.

"What do you want?" Haizea asked impatiently.

Nabooru gave him a foul look. "Isn't it obvious? I'm going with you!"

"Why?" Link asked.

"This is a chance to really get into Ganondorf's face; I'm not passing it up!" She said, fierce determination evident in the way she held herself.

"We never said you could come." Haizea rudely told her.

"And I don't have to keep giving you two free rides." She jeered.

"No, no! It's fine then!" Link exclaimed nervously. He then told Haizea in an angry whisper, "Try to be nice for once!" The slave merely grunted and went on ahead.

"What's his problem?" The woman asked Link.

"Don't look too much into it, he's always like that." He replied. "He's not exactly a people person."

"Tch, I've noticed." She said. "So we're looking for a Temple, right?"

"Yeah, the one at the Zora's Domain had a big arch in front it. So I was thinking that we start asking about any old buildings with arches." Link told her.

"That's good, kid." She nodded in approval. "To the nearest bar then!" She said in a louder-than-normal voice, pointing up to the sky.

"Um, why?"

"Don't look at me like I'm a drunk! It's because bars are where all the information is at." She said as if it were obvious.

"Okay then, but there's a problem with that." Link mentioned.

"And that would be?" She said, rolling her hand in a gesture for him to go on.

"I'm ten." Link pointed out.

She stared blankly at him for a moment. "I guess that would be a problem…"

"Are you done talking or can we can go we now?" Haizea asked impatiently from the bottom of the catwalk.

"Ah hold your horses!" Nabooru shot at him angrily. Both glared at each other. Link could have sworn he saw electricity sparking when their glares met.

"Okay, okay… let's just go on and ask around…" Link said nervously, attempting to block their line of vision. He probably didn't succeed; he wasn't that tall. Being the voice of reason could be scary sometimes.

* * *

They had ended up splitting up to gather information. Nabooru had taken up her suggestion and went to the bar. Haizea just left somewhere, probably with no intention of helping out. Link just went around and did the "ask random people" thing that he was used to doing. Unfortunately, he forgot he was in a town of traders. If he wanted information, he had to pay for it. He was already so low on rupees… He thought he heard his wallet whimper when he was finished getting his info, which was nothing really. Feeling utterly miserable, he headed back towards the ship to wait for Nabooru and Haizea. He didn't have to wait for the latter, he was by the cat walk looking at the water.

"I guess you didn't find anything if you've been here the whole time." Link growled at the pale man.

The slave snorted and said, "If you must know, I did ask around. However, the fish woman said she wanted to speak with me."

"What about?" Link asked.

"Nothing that concerns you." Haizea's voice was icy. Fine then. It's not like Link actually wanted to know. Besides, just from the tone of voice he could tell it was a touchy subject whatever it was.

Then Nabooru came running back, a skip in her step and a wide smile on her face. "I found something I think you'll like!" She said, and then she directed a flat look to Haizea. "So try to look at least a little bit happy."

The slave gave her an annoyed look. "I'll try."

Link grimaced. Some personalities just clashed, he supposed.

With one last foul look at the man, Nabooru redirected her attention to Link and her mood seemed to lighten significantly. "While I was at the bar, I asked around. It looks like at the base of Death Mountain there's a huge arch that leads to a cave. I bet your Temple is that cave!"

"Wow…" Link said in fascination. "I asked just about everyone I could and I didn't get anything useful… How much did you pay them to hear that?"

Nabooru then winced nervously. "Well, I… I used my feminine wiles!" She finally said.

"She means to say she threatened them." Haizea told Link. She gave him a glare and he just shrugged. "You _are_ a pirate. And I think I would do the same."

"Yeah, the question is could you back up any threat you make?" She hissed.

The enslaved magician just gave her an evil grin. "Is that a challenge I hear?"

"It's not like we'd need to take it outside since we are outside." She replied, mimicking his grin.

_Oh no, oh no…_ Link thought. He stepped in between them again. "Hey, hey, can't you guys do this some other time?"

"No, I don't think we can." Was the response from both parties.

"Ah, hold on a second Captain, can I talk to Haizea for a sec?" He asked Nabooru.

"Hmph, just don't let him run away." She said.

Link just nodded with a nervous smile, then he grabbed Haizea's arm and pulled a few feet away. "What are you doing?! I said to be nice!" he snapped.

"No, you said to _try_ to be nice. You never ordered it." Haizea said matter-of-factly.

"Well… I order it-"

"Oh no, you can't do that." Haizea interrupted, his evil grin had returned. "You promised the woman you wouldn't let me run away, remember?"

"But you're not running away." Link said.

"Oh but she wouldn't see it that way. She would see it as an act of cowardice." Haizea said.

"Then it's not a problem! You are a coward!" Link said. Well… if looks could incinerate one on sight, the boy would most certainly be a pile of ashes. He cringed. "Okay… well… How would you fight her? It's not like you could touch her? And your magic would probably kill her."

"Tempting, I think I will use my magic-"

"I order you not to use magic to fight her." Link said quickly. Once again… if looks could incinerate.

"I repeat your own question. How do you expect me to fight?" Haizea spat.

"Um…" Maybe he should let Haizea use magic…

"You take far too long to think these things through." The slave muttered. Without hesitation, he walked back, yanking Link's sword out of its scabbard and heading towards Nabooru, who already had a knife in each hand.

"For someone who doesn't like swords, you've been handling mine a lot lately!" Link shouted angrily.

Haizea paused to smirk at Link. "I never said I didn't like swords." Then he continued on to his fight with Nabooru.

Guh, he was making no sense at all again. But the fight obviously was inevitable. He'd put his money on Nabooru if he had any. She knew how to use those daggers from the look of her stance. She was calm and obviously strategizing her plan to take down her opponent. Being a woman, she was probably light and fast on her feet.

Haizea on the other hand… While it's true he had the advantage of having a longer weapon, he had no idea how to use a sword. Plus, he was a magician. His physical strength was probably maybe about the same as Nabooru's. It was true that he was fast too; Link knew that part well enough. That would make them equal in that area but Haizea was fighting against someone with experience.

Well, that was Link was thinking until he saw the way the slave stood. It was a swordsman's stance. _No way… He knows how to use a sword?_

Just as quickly as the question came into his mind, Nabooru made a lunge for Haizea, dagger on her left looking for some flesh to bite. Link wasn't sure when the sword came and blocked the attack. The woman was surprised at the sudden block, but she didn't let it slow her down. She did a back flip to bring distance between them and then made another quick charge. As if bored, Haizea just moved aside. Nabooru didn't expect the movement, causing her fall on her knees in the floor in front of her. The slave did not let her get up. The sword was pointed at her back and she knew it.

"Looks like I underestimated you." She said, nervous smile on her face. "I didn't think I'd get beaten… and so fast…"

"Don't judge a book by its cover." Haizea sneered. And with that, he pointed the sword away from her and then walked over to Link, handing him the sword hilt first. The boy just stared blankly at it. Haizea had just used his sword against an experienced pirate and beat her. He beat her like if he was a master fighting some lowly pageboy. "Are you going to take back your sword or not? I didn't have to carry it back, you know." Haizea said angrily.

Link jumped a bit and then took back the sword, sheathing it gingerly. "How did you… When did you…?"

Haizea just shrugged. "I just did. Now stop gaping and let's go." Then, stopping for a moment as if he had just forgotten something, he looked back at Nabooru, who was brushing herself off and looking quite rattled. "You're still coming, right?"

"Of course I am!" She snapped. "Just because I lost to you doesn't mean I'll run back to my cabin and cry! I followed you two with the sole purpose of getting on Ganondorf's nerves! A loss isn't going to change that! Now let's go!" She was still edgy from the fight, that much was certain. But she walked off ahead of the two.

"Smart one," Haizea called out sarcastically. "Death Mountain is the other way."

"I knew that! I was testing you!" She shouted, turning on her heel and starting to stomp the other way.

Haizea smiled and actually seemed contented. "I feel good right now." He said.

Link just gave him a disgusted look. "Okay… Seriously, try to be nice from now on. I'm not ordering it, I'm just asking." He told the slave. Then the boy ran up to follow Nabooru.

From behind he could hear Haizea say, "You're no fun."

* * *

I actually never intended to have Nabooru and Haizea fight, but it just worked out. It just kind of happened, but who am I to say no to improvisation? I need to speed things up, though. Good news is, I don't think I'll have to up the rating. But still, be prepared for some darkness in the next few chapters.


	25. A Mysterious Woman

August is here (tomorrow to be exact), that means school is soon to come as well. I wonder if I'll still be able to update as often as I do now? I really hope so. I've planned this whole thing out, every step of the way. I've never been so thorough with a story in my whole life, so it's really an accomplishment! And I've never kept to an update schedule like this one either. Another accomplishment! Hopefully, when school starts, I'll still be able to keep up with it.

* * *

The base of Death Mountain. Just a little higher and they would be at Goron City, but that wasn't where they were going. The trio was looking for their next Temple so they could save the second Siren. However, finding the giant arch that was supposed to precede the Temple wasn't as easy as it first sounded. The terrain was uneven and rocky. For all Link knew, they were probably heading in circles. He didn't bother to ask either Haizea or Nabooru what they thought. Somehow they would end up lashing out at each other. He didn't know why but those two just couldn't get along.

Link had thought they were going to keep wandering around aimlessly for a bit longer but it didn't end up that way. Instead, a scenario of an eerily similar nature to what happened at the forest started up again. Haizea had paused and seemed to be out of himself. A shudder went up Link's spine as something primitive came into the magician's eyes. He stepped forward to get ahead of Link and Nabooru, and then he began looking around erratically.

"Ew, he looks so creepy… What's with him?" Nabooru asked with a shiver.

"This happened once before…" Link muttered. But the pirate didn't hear him. He really didn't have a good feeling about this.

A sinister looking grin came upon Haizea's face and he took off. Link groaned as he watched the magician speedily run off. Nabooru, wasted no time she chased after him. With a sigh, Link decided to join in the chase. Being significantly shorter than both of his companions, however, he found it a miracle that he had caught up to Nabooru. Apparently, she was having a hard time keeping up with the slave.

"What's gotten into him?!" Nabooru asked.

"Your guess is as good as mine!" Link found it hard to say that sentence without any trouble. He felt like his chest was going to implode again. He really should be getting used to this by now…

"You don't know?! He looks like a completely different person!" She said.

"Well yeah, but I don't know why!" Link retorted. His foot hooked over a rock at that moment, causing him to face plant right on the ground. It really, really hurt. What also really hurt is that Nabooru kept going without a second glance at him. He grudgingly got up and began to run again. He saw Nabooru again shortly after he restarted his chase. She was beginning to slow down.

"He just stopped… Down there…" She said, pointing a bit lower.

Link just bent over on his knees and breathed for a good thirty seconds before even trying to look at where the pirate captain pointed. He looked and saw a ledge. One could easily jump it without getting seriously hurt; you'd just need to remember to roll as soon as you hit the ground. Standing atop the ledge of the mini-cliff was Haizea, his back facing Link and Nabooru. With another groan, the boy began to tread towards the enslaved magician. As if she was waiting for him to do something first, Nabooru followed after he started.

He stopped just a bit behind Haizea, looking up briefly to see what the slave was looking at. He was looking ahead at the bottom of a larger cliff in front of them, the feral bloodlust in his eyes focused on one particular thing. Link looked for it. He had to double-take. The arch they were looking for was there, but that wasn't why he to look twice. There was a woman past the archway, looking at the wall. And the woman was eerily familiar.

"Why's he staring at the lady like he wants to rip her guts out?" Nabooru asked, interrupting Link's thoughts.

"Oh… I dunno." He said. Not wanting to cause a scare like before, Link tugged at the slave's sleeve. "Haizea, snap out of it."

A harder tug on the man's sleeve and then all of a sudden he just snapped out of it. Just like last time he stood there, looking dumbstruck. "What happened?" He asked to no one in particular. The, it was as if things slowly pieced themselves together in his mind. "Did that thing happen again? What happened at the forest?" He asked Link.

The boy nodded.

"I don't get it. Thing? What thing? What haven't you guys told me?!" Nabooru demanded.

"That's none of your damned business, woman." Haizea spat.

"I'll tell you later, Captain." Link said. The slave shot him a glare and the pirate just uneasily accepted.

Link looked back at the arch. The woman who was there before was gone. He gave a disappointed sigh and started down the ledge to go examine the wall she was staring so intently at. If the arch was there, then the temple had to be somewhere near it. The wall might have something on it.

He walked speedily over to the wall and looked it up and down. A big part of the wall actually looked different from the rest. It was discolored and really unleveled, even compared to the rest of the rocky wall.

"What we're looking for is behind this wall." Haizea said.

The boy jumped, forgetting that other people had come with him to this place. "On the other side of this wall?" He asked.

"Yeah, can't you tell?" Nabooru said. The put a hand on the wall, then she closed her fist grabbing some of the rock. It fell through her fingers when she opened up her hand again. "This part of the wall wasn't here before. You could tell by the discoloration and the fact that the rock here is different from the rest of the wall."

"But how did this get here then?" He thought out loud.

"Ganondorf probably did it." She said. "When he found out that the first Siren was freed, he probably got panicky and sealed off the entrance to this one. He probably could have done something to the other one too."

At the last sentence, Link had noticed a significant look of alarm on Haizea's face. It went from alarmed to tense and he stepped up to the wall. The boy had a good idea what was going to happen.

"Captain, I think we should get behind the arch…" Link suggested.

"What? Why?" She asked. The boy didn't waste any time from there, he just grabbed Nabooru's arm and led her behind the arch as quickly as he could. Just a few seconds after they had hid themselves behind the safety of the pillars of the arch, there was an explosion.

"Holy octorocks!" Nabooru exclaimed. She ran out to see what had happened. Link joined her and grimaced at the sight. The wall didn't even have a crack in it.

"Dammit." He heard Haizea curse. No doubt the slave was feeling stressed right now.

"How did he…? What happened…?" Nabooru asked blankly.

"Nothing happened!" Haizea spat. "The wall is still here…"

The pirate just looked at the slave uneasily but Link could tell Haizea was worried. When Nabooru mentioned the part about the last Temple, he immediately worried for Rayeh. But the explosion didn't work. That probably made him feel like… a big, steaming pile…

"How are we going to break it…?" Link asked. It was more thinking aloud. No one answered.

"Link…" The boy jumped. It was a girl's voice, but it wasn't Nabooru's.

"Who said that?" The pirate captain asked in alarm.

"It wasn't me, I'm not a woman." Haizea said, still looking tense. "Besides, I make it a point not to address the boy by his name."

"Link." It was the voice again. The boy turned quickly to face the arch. It was the woman from before, standing by one of the pillars of the arch. Her face, her voice… it was eerily familiar…"Link." She said again, this time with a smile. She walked up to the group and her smile widened.

"How does she know your name?" Nabooru asked him.

"I think…" The boy started, but he couldn't finish. This woman she… looked exactly like… just how he remembered her…

"A relative of yours, maybe?" Haizea said. His eyes narrowed on the woman. He didn't like her.

"I don't know." Link said honestly, but his voice was shaking.

"Link." She said happily. Then she took the boy's hand and started walking, leading him somewhere. He wasn't sure what was going on, so the thought of fighting back never once crossed his mind.

"Hey, where does she think she's going with him?!" Nabooru said, quickly following them. Haizea just frowned and also followed.

The woman, who reminded Link so much of his mother, kept a firm grip on his arm. Despite being very, very confused the boy did take note that she was leading them higher up the mountain. She seemed to be very familiar with the mountain because she had no problems navigating it. She still managed to retain her smile throughout the whole trip; though, the boy couldn't help but notice a bruise on her face and smaller ones along the arm she held him with. She eventually stopped when she caught sight of a being with a back like a rock. A Goron. Link had never seen one before… They looked funny. But before he could get a really good look at it, the woman dragged him behind a large rock. She looked nervous. Haizea and Nabooru joined them behind the rock shortly after.

"A Goron?" Nabooru asked.

"She probably wants to lead us to Goron City. That's most likely a guard posted there to make sure no monsters come in." Haizea answered.

The woman then looked at Haizea and nodded happily.

"What's all this noise back here, goro?" The Goron from before looked over the rock where the group was hiding. He focused, however, on the woman who led them there. "You! Get out of here, witch!" He shouted.

The woman cringed, letting go of Link in the process. She hadn't moved, though, so the Goron came around and grabbed her roughly by the arm. The woman squealed and then screamed as the Goron threw her back. After falling roughly to the floor, she scrambled up and hurried away.

A flare ignited behind Link's eyes. He marched up to the Goron. "Why did you that?!"

"Goro? Oh, I hadn't even noticed you… What are you friends with that witch?" he asked, beady eyes narrowing on the group.

Link was about to shout something, but Haizea came and covered his mouth. "We don't know her, she just led us here." The slave told the Goron.

"Oh… Okay then." The Goron grunted.

"Excuse me," Nabooru piped in. "You called that woman a witch?"

The Goron grunted again and crossed his beefy arms. "Yes, that woman is crazy. She came on the island years ago. She seemed coherent enough at first but then she got involved with that sorceress. Ever since then she's only been able to say one word. She's been bringing bad luck to anyone she meets, no doubt because hung around that witch-woman. She occasionally comes and goes to the Temple, probably to practice some black magic…" He explained. Then, a look of revelation came on his round face. "Wait a second, what are you doing here?!"

"I told you that woman led us here." Haizea said it as if he had said it for the umpteenth time.

"But we don't really know her!" Nabooru said quickly.

"Oh… okay then… What brings you to Goron City, brothers?" The Goron asked, suddenly seeming much more light-hearted.

Link struggled against the slave so he could get a word in. It was anything nice, though. He still wanted to chew out the Goron for hurting the woman. But slave didn't let go.

"The Temple, where you said that woman goes, it's blocked off. Explosions don't work." Haizea told the Goron.

"Explosions don't work you say? You'd probably need to dig through, then…" The Goron said. From then on, he began talking to the floor, but it seemed more like he was thinking aloud. "A human work crew wouldn't be able to dig through if an explosion didn't work… We Gorons might be able to dig through but…" Then he focused his attention back on the group. "I don't know why you'd want to go in there, but we Gorons have brute strength! We could dig through for you, but we'd need the Chief's permission."

"Could you please?" Nabooru asked in a pining tone. "We really need to get through…" It seemed weird for her to be acting like a damsel in distress.

The Goron scratched his head thoughtfully. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to ask… Alright, follow me." The Goron then turned and walked on ahead.

They let the Goron walk a little ways ahead and then Haizea made the boy face him. Before he released his hand off the child's mouth he gave him a firm look. "Watch your mouth. That woman led us here most likely knowing what would happen. If I hadn't stepped in, that idiot of a Goron would've thrown us out just like he did that woman. Think before you act." Then he let go Link and pushed him forward.

"Sure thing, dad…" The boy grumbled.

"What was that about?" Nabooru asked, she was closer to Haizea so her attention focused on him.

"None of your business." He snapped at the woman. "Nice little act by the way, pretending to be so helpless. He never would have fallen for that if he'd been with you alone in a room for an hour." He sneered.

"At least I know how to act civil." She spat, and then stomped off behind the Goron.


	26. Leanan and Loreena

This chapter is where it really starts to deviate from normal Zelda story-lines. I apoloize for the late update. Not quite Monday, but I would've updated earlier had I not been sidetracked... -coughwatchingGurrenLaganncough-

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The Goron hadn't gone too far when they reached Goron City. Strange rock structures and formations with doorways in front of them told everyone enough to know that those were buildings. Link was a bit shocked to see a Goron chomp down on a rock. Nabooru explained to him that Gorons ate stone when she saw his expression. Aside from looking like boulders, they ate them too? Gorons were weird.

Their guide stopped in front of one of the bigger rock huts and told them to wait outside. After a few moments, he came back out and told the group to go in. Inside the rock structure was a complete little professional looking set-up. Tribal but it obviously told one that they were in a place that belonged to a leader. Standing in the middle of the room was big, bearded Goron, arms crossed and looking mighty annoyed. Making him even more intimidating were the tribal tattoos etched on the visible parts of his body.

"So you three wanna go to the Siren Temple at the base of the mountain, eh? What business do you have there?"

"We need to save the Siren there in order to stop Ganondorf from taking of over Hyrule." Nabooru said plainly. Both Link and Haizea gave her a foul look. "What? He should at least know the truth…"

The Goron Chief simply stared at them with a poker face. "Is that it?" He asked. Then he smiled and laughed a big throaty laugh. "That's it? Here I was thinking you were a bunch of Ganondorf's minions here to cause more trouble, especially since you came with that crazy woman! But you're not that's a relief!" He said.

"Causing trouble? He's been here before?" Link asked.

The Goron Chief nodded and said, "Yeah, he came around a month ago with some really scary looking women. He demanded the allegiance of the Gorons to his plan to take over Hyrule. Since we're friends with the King, we refused and he told us we'd rue the day and all that nonsense and then just left. Recently a patrolman told me that they caught sight of him near the base of the mountain. But he never came here, so we paid no mind to it. That's when he probably sealed up the cavern that leads to the temple. Don't worry, we Gorons can bust open that cave for you in a jiff!"

"And how long would that be?" Haizea asked impatiently.

The Goron Chief either ignored the slave's tone or didn't mind it. "I'd need to see it first in order to give you all a proper estimate. Just wait here for a moment while I go gather some more Gorons for this." He told them. Then he left the building.

"He seems awfully carefree for a chief." Nabooru pointed out.

"He seems like an idiot to me." Haizea said.

"But you think everyone's an idiot." Link told him.

The slave just shrugged. "It's true."

After that brief exchange of words, it was just quiet. Link and Nabooru just looked around, occasionally giving a weird look to anything that looked… well, weird. Haizea was making it a point to look as bored as possible. Link was just glad that his two companions hadn't said a word to each other, lest another fight start. Then the Goron Chief came back and led them out and back to where the wall was. The Gorons inspected the wall, grouped around their Chief and began whispering things. Eventually the Chief nodded and then turned to the group.

"It might not be as much of a jiff as I thought it would be. According to the crew here, it'll take at least a day for this wall to get cleared up." He told them.

"Well hurry up and snap to it then!" Haizea hissed. Nabooru just shook her head in disappointment and Link just frowned. Ever the patient man, Haizea was.

Once again, the Chief either ignored the tone or didn't mind it. "This time tomorrow the cavern will be open and you can get to the Temple! I wouldn't recommend hanging around, though. No offense, but you humans might get in the way."

The Goron Chief obviously didn't mean it in a bad way but the looks on both Haizea's and Nabooru's faces said they thought otherwise. Link stepped in between them and the big Goron before they could start anything and said quickly, "None taken! We'll just get out of your way now!" Then he looked back at the two adults behind him. "Isn't that right you guys?"

The pirate grumbled something and the slave gave him a dirty look but they reluctantly backed down. With a sigh of relief, the boy then took the lead. Since they really had nothing better to do, Link decided they might as well head back to Kakariko Village. What he really wanted to do was find out more about that woman from before and the so-called witch she hung out with. As if on cue, the woman then came out from behind a rock and happily cried, "Link!"

"It's that lady…" Nabooru said quietly as the woman approached Link and smiled at him. "She seems to like you." She told him.

Link just nodded and looked up at the woman. She had some new bruises… "Are you okay?" he asked her.

"Link?" She asked, as if she didn't quite understand.

Haizea didn't really pay any attention to the woman, however. He stared at the rock she came from with disgust. "She didn't come alone…" He growled.

Link and Nabooru looked at him strangely and then glanced over to the rock. They almost jumped when they saw another woman standing there. She was wearing a cloak of dark blue, the hood over her head. But the hood did not hide her remarkably beautiful face. She looked very serene and calm as she walked closer to the group.

"I see…" She said, focusing her gaze on Link. "You are the one that she is so attached to…" Her voice was soft and musical, it made the boy shudder.

"Excuse me, miss," Nabooru piped in. "You're the one that the Gorons don't like."

The cloaked woman looked at the Gerudo, looking unalarmed. She then smiled a small smile, "Yes. I am called Leanan." Then she looked to the woman with Link and put a hand on her shoulder. "This woman came to the island years ago and I found her. She had already lost mind, only ever saying one word. I have sheltered her ever since. Tell me boy, is your name that she speaks?" She asked Link.

"Um, yeah…" He said.

"I see…" She said. "If you and your companions would be so kind as to follow me, I would like to speak to you in my home." She turned and walked ahead of them, but she didn't walk so much as she did glide. The woman by Link then turned quickly to follow the hooded woman. Nabooru shrugged and also began to follow. Link started too but Haizea held him back.

The slave's gaze was still focused on Leanan. "The hooded woman… There's something not right about her…" He said. "I wouldn't put too much trust in her." Then he let go of Link and also started to follow the rest of them. The boy found it odd but didn't really think much off it. He ran to catch up with everyone else.

Leanan had led them to a small house on the outskirts of Kakariko Village. It was a small, modest place. Three was definitely a crowd in there, so having five people inside of it definitely made it feel stuffy. Link and Nabooru made themselves as comfortable as they could in the small house, sitting down on the available chairs. Haizea stood, leaning against the wall looking bitter as always. The strange woman who seemed to know only Link's name sat down on the floor playing with a piece of string. She was obviously a grown woman but sitting there with that string she looked so much like a child. It was kind of sad. Leanan took a seat across from the rest of the group, lowering her hood to reveal a pale face and strange, light hair, almost resembling Haizea's.

"You all come from different places, united in the cause to defeat the beast in the Temple and free the Siren…" Leanan said.

Link gaped. "How do you-"

The woman interrupted with her musical voice. "I know much about you all." She looked at Nabooru. "You, woman, have suffered much at the hands of Ganondorf… including a broken heart." The pirate visibly flinched and then Leanan looked to Haizea. "You, sir, are a mystery, even to yourself. With the loss of your memory you have lost yourself and have turned into a bitter, confused man."

"You don't know me, woman." The slave said bitterly. But the way he shifted uncomfortably said that she was right.

The pale woman merely smiled again. She turned to Link. "And you… you are a child of destiny chosen by the gods… You have come here to help the Siren to save the girl you love."

"I don't…" Link started, but he figured it was pointless to go on. No one was going to believe him if he said otherwise. He didn't even know if believed himself.

"Tell me… Link… why is it do you think that woman," Leanan pointed to the woman on the floor, "Knows your name."

Link froze. "I… I don't know."

"I know why she knows your name."

"Huh? Why… How?" Link asked.

"What the Gorons have said is true… I am a witch." Leanan said somewhat sadly. "However, not all witches are evil. One of my abilities is to seeing the hearts of other people. When this woman first came to the island, I saw within her heart. She had lost her husband and found herself in a strange place of which she had no knowledge. She was distraught for the son she could not find… She speaks only his name, now. And due to your similar features I believe this woman is your mother, Link."

"My mother…" Link said. "But my mom she…"

"When I saw her heart I also became aware of her name." Leanan said. "Loreena."

"That was… my mom's name…" His voice barely came out in a whisper.

"Wait a second…" Nabooru said thoughtfully. "That crazy lady on the floor playing with a piece of string… is the kid's mother?"

Everything after that really came as a blur. There was a short conversation amongst the adults. Then he remembered hearing Leanan mention something about leaving him and his mother alone. The next thing he knew, when he looked around the room was empty save for himself and his mother sitting down playing with her faded blond locks. He walked over and sat next to her. She smiled at him. Her eyes were clouded with the crazy.

"Mom?" He said. She froze and for a second it seemed like the crazy left her, but then she just gave him another smile and went back to playing with her own hair. "Mom… what happened? Why did you leave?" He knew he wasn't going to get an answer, but he asked anyways. "Mom… Mom…" He found himself holding back tears. His mother… that was his mother. It was his mother that disappeared so long ago. He thought she had died, taken by an unexpected tide or something… But here she was alive and insane! He wasn't sure which was worse… a crazy mother or a dead mother. As much as he didn't want it, the tears came down and he found himself crying.

He felt her eyes on him. He didn't know if she really understood but her arms came around him. He found himself hugging her back. "Mom…"

"Link…?" The woman then pulled him away from her. The crazy had left her eyes. "Link… this is really you? It's not… a dream?" She said. She placed a hand on his cheek and then she suddenly burst into tears and grabbed Link again. "Goodness, you've gotten so big…" She said quietly.

"Mom… I missed you… Where did you go?" He asked between sniffs.

Loreena's head jerked and she pulled him away again. She looked panicked. "Link, I would love to tell you what's going on but I can't…" She looked furtively at the door and then back at her son. "Listen, honey… You need to leave here as fast as you can…"

"But Mom-"

She placed a finger on his lips. "No buts. Please, just leave here. Forget about your mother." She pleaded.

"But I can't just leave you here! And I have to-" He started, but she just placed her finger on his lips again.

"No, please, you have to go…" Her eyes began to fog up with the crazy again. Before they were completely filled with it, she wiped his tears, "Forget your mother…"

The door opened. Leanan was there. "Your mother is not herself. I am sorry." She said sadly.

Link was about to tell her what happened but he stopped himself. "Yeah… She isn't herself…"

"Your friends are waiting for you outside. Go to them, I will take care of your mother." She said.

Link just nodded and got up. He went to the door, Leanan stepping aside to let him through. Before exiting the house, he looked back one last time at his mother. She was playing with the string again. Then he looked at Leanan. Her face was utterly expressionless with that serene smile. That fake serene smile.

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Oooh! Mysteriousness! Cue the Twilight Zone theme song! Yes, Link's mother is still alive. Please don't eat me for it. I promise you, I don't taste very good. D:


	27. Venting

_**Important announcement here**_. It concerns the update schedule. Mondays and Thursdays are a given. There will always be updates on those days. However, I've been writing this so much and so fast that there will be frequent early updates. The early updates will probably stop when school starts and the regular update schedule will proceed. As for now, you'll get lots and lots of updates. LOVE IT.

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He left the house. Haizea and Nabooru were across the street waiting for him.

"So that was really your mother?" Nabooru asked.

"Yeah…" Link said solemnly.

"I'm sorry…"

Link glanced up at her curiously. "Why?"

"Well, your mom is… well… she's not right in the head…"

"That woman is perfectly sane." Haizea said. He looked bothered by something. "The other woman… She's a different story."

"You mean that lady who looks like a bit like you? She seemed nice enough to me." The pirate said.

"No, Haizea's right." Link said. "She's not right…"

"Listen to yourselves, you sound like a bunch of paranoid cuccos!" Nabooru scolded.

"My mom talked to me!" Link exclaimed. The pirate captain looked at him in surprise. "And it wasn't just my name! She _talked_ to me! And when Leanan came back, she was crazy again!"

It remained quiet for a moment.

The Gerudo pirate sighed and said, "We should get some information Leanan then." Link looked up at her disbelievingly. "Oh don't give me that look; you're making me feel worse! Listen, if both you and pale-face think something's up with that lady than there probably is. Added the fact that you said your mother actually had a conversation with you and then went loopy again when Leanan came back, the lady's suspicious for sure!"

It was quiet again.

"What I mean to say is…" Nabooru began, "Is that you guys seem to be a better judge of character than me…"

"I take it that would have something to do with what Leanan mentioned earlier." Haizea told her. "Suffering from a broken heart at the hands of Ganondorf, she said?"

Nabooru's expression grew stern. "Yes." Link half expected a look of delight on the slave's face when the pirate said that but he was still looking serious. Then, the exact nature of the dialog hit Link.

"Wait, wait, wait… What?" The boy blurted out. He wouldn't be surprised if he had a horrified look on his face, he was pretty sure he did have one.

The pirate's brow furrowed and she bit her lip. "Yes… Me and Ganondorf were friends at one point in time…" She said. "But he kept secrets from me… And when I found out what exactly he wanted to do… I knew it wasn't right…" She stopped talking. She seemed very distraught.

Link was still trying to register the whole thing in his head. That was very… Well, it was downright suspicious that's what it was! How could he trust her now?!

"I figured as much…" Haizea muttered. "We're wasting time here. Let's get the information on Leanan."

They both looked at him strangely.

He just scowled at them and then looked to Nabooru. "It's not like I care-about either subject. It's none of my business what went on between you and Ganondorf." Then he turned to Link. "And I don't care what befalls your mother. The fact is, that woman knew something about _me_ and I suspect she may know more. If we can get information on her then perhaps we can find out what she really is, because she is _not_ a witch."

"But how would that help you?" The pirate woman asked him.

Haizea glared at her and she raised her arms in defeat, not pushing the subject further. But Link had a good idea of what it was about. If Leanan did know more about Haizea it was because she was really old and most likely not human. If that was the case she might know the slave's real name. If he had his real name, he wouldn't be held back by his curses anymore.

It also meant something to Link. If she wasn't human then she was keeping his mother for a reason… And none of the reasons he could think of were very good.

"It's not like we have anything better to do." Link finally said. "We already know what the Gorons think of her, so let's start asking the people here."

With more than enough daylight to burn, as they asked the villagers about Leanan they received more questions than answers. The woman showed up shortly after Link's mother did, after which his mother descended slowly into insanity. She was quiet, almost always keeping to herself. In fact she never really left the house until recently to make trips to the Temple of the Siren. Before that the people barely even saw her. Most of the time Loreena was the one who made trips to the market to get food and such. Some people did report seeing her late at nights, but what exactly she was doing they couldn't say. Overall, they received nothing useful except that the townsfolk were wary of her.

All a bit disappointed in the lack of information, they retreated back to the ship at dusk. Traveling around in a big ship was convenient in that aspect; they didn't have to go to an inn. When back up the catwalk and on the deck, Nabooru immediately went to her quarters. Link had a good guess why and he went to follow her to talk to her about it.

"I wouldn't recommend it." Haizea warned.

"Huh?"

"You want to speak with her on her exact feelings for Ganon. I wouldn't recommend it." The slave said nonchalantly.

Link forked an eyebrow. "Why not?"

Haizea sighed and shook his head in disappointment. "For a boy whose best friend is a girl, I thought you would've taken note of it." He said.

The boy was getting a headache. "Taken note of what?" Why couldn't the slave just be straightforward? Was it so hard?

The pale man seemed to think over his words carefully and finally said, "Child, women are difficult creatures to understand. They don't think like you or me and they can and will take things way out of proportion. If she really wants to talk she'll tell someone about it. In short, if you confront her about it now, question where exactly her loyalties lie… Regardless of which side she's really on, you won't be around to suffer puberty."

Yikes. "So, which side do you think she's really on?" Link asked.

"Asking for my opinion? This has to be a first…" Haizea said, amusement playing in his voice.

Link scowled. "Just answer the question!"

"I think we can trust her." Haizea told him casually.

The boy had a questioning look on his face. "But I thought you didn't like her?"

"I don't, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't think she was useful." The slave said, then he walked off into the direction of the kitchen. No doubt he was still rattled after what Leanan said. Haizea lost himself with the loss of his memories, huh? Link never thought that losing one's self was possible but now that he really thought of it… He didn't think he could be himself if he couldn't remember anything about himself.

He shrugged it off and started down towards where the crew slept. That's where he had to sleep… with the crew… Those cruel, cruel ladies that constantly poked fun at him. But he just had to do what his grandfather said, endeavor to persevere! He once asked his grandfather what would happen if he didn't do that. The answer hurt. A lot. So he arrived at the door where he'd inevitably have to suffer an hour or two of emotional torture going to sleep.

"Hey, kid?" Saved by Nabooru, praise the goddesses. Wait, Nabooru? He turned back to see her standing in a way that said she was unsure about something. "Mind if I vent?"

He didn't quite understand what was meant but he shrugged and said, "Sure."

She sighed in relief. "Thanks…" Then she sat down right where she stood. Link got a little closer and sat down across from her. She took a breath and then she started. "I don't want you to think I'm not on your side. I am. It's just… when I was little I looked up to Ganondorf. He was just so strong, stronger than the rest of us. If he wasn't such a crazed maniac then he would really be worthy to be called King of the Gerudo. But I didn't always know he was so demented. I looked up to him, he was my hero. Soon enough I start working my butt off to get closer to him and when I do, I find out he's up to no good! And when you're a person who works hard all your life to finally meet the one person you've been dying to meet-a person you think will really help your people, make them prosper-and then you find out he's planning to be more than just the king of one people but of all people… It kind of crushes everything you've ever known."

"Um… I'm sorry?" The boy still didn't really understand the whole situation. Sure, he had a hero too. His grandpa was his hero, but he'd known the man his whole life. He didn't know what she was going through at all.

"Nah, don't be sorry. I'm just being an idiot." Nabooru said, suddenly seeming back to her normal self. "After all, now I get to crush his dreams like he did mine!" It was a bit scary how perky she sounded when she said that. That really happy smile didn't say otherwise, too. Then she slapped Link on the back in a friendly gesture. "Thanks for listening, kid. I needed to get the steam out."

"Your welcome, I guess… but why did you have to talk to me about it?" He asked. Surely there was someone else that she could've talked to about this. Not that he minded, he was glad he could help in some way.

"Well, I can't tell my crew. They'd lose all faith in me. Pale face is just anti-social as hell and I just don't like him. You on the other hand… Well, you're the perfect little listener!" She told him happily. "Seriously, if there's anything I can do to make it up you… Well, almost anything."

"Really?!" Link immediately knew what he wanted. "Can I not sleep with the rest of the crew please?!" He said quickly.

She stared at him unbelievingly for a moment and then began to laugh. He wasn't sure if she was laughing because she thought it was a joke or just because it was a totally unexpected question. When her chuckles died down she said, "Sure thing! You can go sleep in the galley. No one'll be in there, I don't like midnight snackers. Pale face is the one who's really allowed in there after dark since he works the kitchen and since he's probably holed up in there, you won't be bothered." Then Link could've sworn she whispered, "Wow… not all demanding like most other kids I've met."

Soon enough, Nabooru headed off for her quarters and Link made it to the galley. There were no lights on, leaving it kind of dark, except for a crack at the end of the room at the bottom of the kitchen door. Link just took a chair and sat at one of the long tables. Putting his head down and using his arms as a pillow, he closed his eyes and let sleep take him.

He dreamed. But this dream was more like a memory. He was at home. He could hear his grandpa snoring in the other room and the wind whipping against the house. He looked around his own room. He was in his bed, a small bed. There was a larger bed nearby, but no one was in it. He sleepily jumped off his bed. "Mama?" He heard himself call out quietly. His voice was so tiny… "Mama?" He said again. He went out of his room, exploring the rest of the house while calling for his mother. It seemed so big… It wasn't that big, was it?

Then he saw the front door, wide open. He could hear the ocean hissing at the sand as he neared the open door. It was windy. He could feel the sand biting his face, so he hurriedly closed his eyes as to not get sand in them. He backed away from the door a little and opened his eyes. He could see someone on the beach. A woman, her hair whipping all around her face. "Mama?" He called out. But she couldn't hear over the wind and the water. She turned quickly the other way, as if her attention was caught by something. She jerked back, as if someone had just pushed her. He thought he could make something out… a faint blue light pushing against her. His mother's body jerked and fought against this faint blue light, but the light was stronger. The light went inside of his mother and then she just walked… walked away.


	28. To the Cavern!

Time to get back to business! Like, in the story. I'm always busy since I'm always writing this. But that isn't a bad type of busy.

* * *

He woke up as light from the galley windows hit him on his face. Luckily, it was from an eastern widow, so he wasn't late for anything this time. If anything he was early. He sniffed something in the air, something like food in the making. Yup, he woke up just as the sun was coming up. That was normally when Haizea would start making breakfast. He exited the galley, knowing that if the slave found out he had slept there, he'd be in big trouble. Not that he could really do anything about Link's staying there, but better to avoid any trouble before it started.

Some of the crew were already up and hanging around the boat. Since they were still docked, they were just lazing around. Nothing to do. Though, he had heard that some of the Gerudo crew went into town in an attempt to sell swag that they had no use for. Link really had nothing to do either. The Goron Chief said, "Same time tomorrow." It would still be hours before "same time tomorrow" came. So until then, he really had nothing to do. Unless Nabooru wanted him to do some more dirty work. Surprisingly enough, when she came out she didn't want him to do any dirty work. Instead she asked if he could accompany her to the town market.

"I wanna see if there's anything useful." She said when Link asked why.

So they went.

They looked around for a bit. There was some pretty neat stuff that boys his age would love to have. He was no exception. He wanted a lot of the stuff he saw on sale. At least the stuff that looked cool, like the boomerangs and slingshots. Those would've been neat to get if he could afford anything. He couldn't.

He didn't want to brood about it so he started thinking about his dream. It was so strange. It didn't feel like a dream. It was actually eerily familiar. The more he thought about the more thought it wasn't just a dream. He never could remember how exactly his mother had disappeared. No one knew how she disappeared, so that probably didn't help any. Since he was so young at the time, if he had seen it he might not have remembered. Perhaps that dream was just a memory that was coming back now, since he actually found his mother.

His mother.

"Captain…?" Link asked.

"Hmm?"

"Can we go see my mom? Not for long I just… I wanna check up on her…" He said.

Nabooru gave him sad smile and then a soft pat on the back. "Sure, kid."

So they headed off in the direction of Leanan's small house. He wasn't looking forward to meeting with Leanan. In fact, it was because Leanan was in charge of his mother that he really wanted to check up on her. No one trusted her. That just screamed bad in his opinion.

To their surprise, when they arrived at Leanan's house, Haizea was there waiting for them.

"Why're you here? I thought you didn't care about the kid's mom." Nabooru said bitterly.

"I don't but I care about what the other woman is up to." Haizea sneered. "And that's why I'm here."

"Huh?" Link found himself saying.

"Your crazy mother is inside being loony, no need to worry about that. But the other woman is gone." He said bitterly.

"Gone? What do you mean gone?" Nabooru said.

"Exactly what it sounds like: gone. She's not here." The slave told her flatly.

"I guess she's out somewhere…" Link mused.

"Or she knew pale-face was coming to interrogate her." The pirate added.

"Oh sure, go ahead and talk like that. It's not like _I'm right here_." Haizea snapped.

"Don't worry, I know you're there. That's why I said it." She said with a bittersweet smile. The slave just glared.

Sensing the danger levels rising, Link stepped in between them. "I'm just gonna check on my mom for a second, then we can go see if the Gorons are done. Please don't kill each other." He said with all the sincerity he could possibly muster. He stepped back, carefully watching the two exchange icy glares and retreated into the small house. He looked around the living room to see nothing out of the ordinary from last time. His mother was in her little corner again, playing with her hair. She looked up at Link and gave a small smile and wave, then resumed with her hair. No recognition…

_Mom… I'll come get you after I save that Siren… I'll make everything right again… I promise…_

He exited the house, surprised to find that there weren't bloodstains everywhere and one victor standing.

"Hey, are you okay there?" Nabooru asked. She had a look of genuine concern.

"Yeah…" He thought for a moment. She probably wouldn't like it but… "Captain… could you stay here and watch my mom for me?"

"What? Why?!" She asked angrily. "Why can't pale-face stay!?"

"Because I don't give a damn." Haizea answered her.

"That's it, pretty much…" Link grumbled.

"But…" She looked disheartened but then a flash of anger came to her. "You're a kid; I don't have to listen to you! I'm going whether you like it or not!"

Link flinched. He expected such a response but he didn't think it would be quite so scary.

Then, to everyone surprise, Haizea said, "Try to think of it from his point of view. His insane mother was being tended to by a woman of questionable nature and now she's left alone and the other woman isn't here. He just wants to make sure nothing suspicious is going on. If you were to stay here and the witch-woman were to come back, then you can just say you're checking up on her. If I were to stay, that woman would definitely know I was there to spy. Simply put, you're better at charades than I am."

The pirate bit her lip. "Fine… I won't like it, though! You guys owe me! The next time around, I'm going with you no matter what! Got it?" She said angrily.

Link found himself hugging her, causing the Gerudo to flush slightly. "Thanks…" was all he managed to say.

"Fine, fine…" She said while pushing him off. "Oh yeah, and one more thing…" She rummaged through a bag she brought with her when they went to the marketplace. She took out a boomerang and handed it to the boy. "I was going to use myself but seeing as I'm being kicked out of this particular venture… well, you'd put it to better use."

Link just stared at the boomerang for a while. It was a good one, very well made. It was light and sturdy. It'd definitely give someone a good bump on the head if it hit anyone. He waved it around almost feeling giddy holding it. He went and hugged Nabooru again. "Thanks!" He said it with much more gusto this time.

Once again she pushed him off. "Stop with the hugging! It's embarrassing!" She cried. "Just go and kick the butts of those baddies, okay?!"

Link nodded and then took off. He managed to hear Haizea mutter something about how he didn't feel like running. _Now you know how it feels._ Link thought, feeling triumphant. Of course, as soon as the triumph came it was gone. The slave caught up easily and Link started to slow down. No use burning so much energy he was going to need later. He couldn't help but notice how distracted the slave seemed to be, though.

"Why so out there? Are you thinking about Rayeh?" Link teased. He thought he understood why Haizea loved to torture him so much about Zelda now.

The magician shot him a death glare. "No I wasn't."

"Then what were you thinking about?" Asked Link, unconvincingly twirling his boomerang around.

"If you must know, I was thinking about that Leanan woman." Haizea said. "Her name is familiar…"

Link shuddered. "I don't think I really want to know why it's familiar…"

"Bah, it probably wasn't anything like that. I think she'd be a bit more bitter in that case." The slave said.

"I guess that's true…" The boy replied. He remembered his grandfather once saying something… Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, was it? When he asked what it meant his grandpa told him that an angry woman was something very scary (something which he could now vouch for seeing the things he'd seen on his adventure so far). Knowing Haizea, he probably had gotten plenty of women angry. And if he had gotten a witch angry it would probably be worse. "How do you think you know her then?"

Haizea rolled his eyes. "If I knew that I wouldn't be trying to remember."

"Oh, yeah…" It was kind of a stupid question…

They arrived at the base of the mountain and saw the group of Gorons from the day before. They were lazing around in a fashion that reminded Link of the lazy carpenters at Castle Town. Behind the loafing Gorons was the wall which had once been sealed off. Now there was a gaping hole in the wall and the debris of all the work involved was surrounding it. The Chief Goron was there and already walking in their direction.

"Right on time!" He said in his booming voice. "We just finished not too long ago! You can go in now!"

"Thanks!" Link said. With that he started making for the cave. The faster he saved the Siren the faster he could figure out the business with his mother and Leanan.

"Ah, but wait one second, brother!" The big Goron said. "I'm sure you already know but that place is dangerous."

"Yes, yes, monsters and such. We know." Haizea said with a frown.

The Goron looked at the slave for a second and blinked. "Oh, there are monsters all right but that's not it." Both Link and the slave looked questioningly at the Goron. "That Temple used to be home to our famous hot springs, but then the water started getting too hot, even for us Gorons. If you fall into a water pit, you won't survive. Be careful."

When the Goron said that, Link remembered a time when he was once in Hyrule Castle's kitchen. He was really young and the head chef sat him on a stool and was teaching him about lobster. He remembered the pot of boiling hot water and the chef dropping a lobster right in it. He couldn't recall if the lobster was alive or not, the point is he didn't want end up like a lobster. He just nodded grimly to the Goron and all of a sudden felt very hesitant to enter the cave.

"Come on, boy, let's get this over with." Haizea said walking on ahead. He didn't seem bothered at all by the warnings of the Chief. Sometimes, the kid really wished he could have the slave's disregard for everything around him. Sometimes.


	29. The Temple in the Mountain

This is, by far, the longest chapter I have written for this story so far. I really didn't feel like splitting into two, so I didn't. Blech, writing the Temple chapters is such a drag... except for the boss fights. I enjoy writing those, but since this story is for the most part an original Zelda story I have to come up with original puzzles. I don't think that's where my skills lie. D:

* * *

They entered the cavern and walked for around a minute. It was dark, but the light from the mouth of the cave was sufficient to let them see a bit ahead of themselves. Then there was an entryway suitable for a Temple standing in front of them. Yes, they were where they needed to be. The Temple of the Siren, the second one. They went through the entryway. Unlike the first Temple which lead them through a hallway into the main room, the entryway immediately lead them into the main chamber. This chamber was similar to the one from the last Temple, except the lighting didn't seem to be natural. There were chandeliers on the ceilings, each holding a strange orb of light. Other than that there were two doors on the sides and one big door straight ahead with a large lock on it. This lock had four keyholes in it.

"Guess we need to find the keys for that door… Just like the last time…" Link muttered.

"Seems so. I must insist that I go wherever you go this time around, however." Haizea told him.

"Why-oh yeah… I remember…" The boy said, thinking more aloud than actually talking to the slave. The last time they went their separate ways in the Temple to save time. He wasn't sure what exactly happened, but Haizea had been wounded badly enough to force Molpe to heal him. It was understandable that he didn't want that happening again. "I guess we'll start at the right."

So they went through the right door. A blast of heat hit both of them when they entered. One didn't have to look hard to see why. There was a narrow pathway ahead of them. Under the pathway was water. Very hot, boiling water that reminded Link of the lobster he saw all those years ago. There was even steam rising from the water! The boy felt his legs shaking. He really didn't want to cross the path. Haizea wasted no time, though. He walked right over as if nothing was under the path and gave Link a look of irritation once on the other side.

_Okay Link… you can do this… You are a man! A very small man, but a man!_ He thought, trying to encourage himself. It didn't really work but he took a shaky step ahead. The steam from the hot water was already damping Link; he couldn't tell if it was just the water vapor on his skin or if he was actually sweating from nervousness. It was probably both… He took another shaky step, and another… and another… After what seemed like days he finally made it to the other side.

"Took you long enough." Haizea told him.

"Shut up…" Link mumbled angrily. Then he stomped over to the next door.

The next room was just a seemingly normal room. It was large and square, with pockets of boiling, steaming water in each corner. In the middle of the right and left walls were two large, solid blocks. In the middle of the room was a switch. The door across the room was barred.

"That switch probably unbars the door. Go step on it." Haizea said.

"Why me?" Link asked.

"Because if it doesn't unbar the door, I don't want to be the one to suffer the consequences." He said it as if it were obvious.

The boy forked an eyebrow. "You really shouldn't say things like that. _You_ go step on the switch."

"Hmmm… Yes, I really shouldn't say things like that anymore…" The slave mused. He walked over and reluctantly stood on the switch.

Nothing happened.

"Nothing happened." Link said.

"Have I ever told you how observant you are?" Haizea said sarcastically. He made a move to step off the switch but Link didn't let him.

"No! Stay there!" He cried out.

"Why?" The slave's voice was filled with annoyance and confusion.

Link looked around. "Just stay there for a second…" Then he ran off to one of the water pits. It was a little difficult to look down the pit, due to the boiling water and its sheer heat but he managed to see a dark blot at the bottom. It was a switch! Each of the water pits had a switch in them! But he couldn't just swim down there and press the switch. That water was dangerous. And even if he could, something would need to hold it down… The blocks!

"From the look of revelation on your face, I'm assuming you thought of something." Haizea said, still standing on the switch.

"Yeah, just stay there!" Link said, feeling a little excited that he just figured out the puzzle to the room. He ran over to one of the blocks, grabbed it, and started pulling. It was really, really heavy, but he was moving it. As soon as there was enough space in between the first and second block, he ran out over behind the block and then started pushing it. It was nearing the water pit and then all of a sudden it sunk down into the pit. Water rushed outside from the pit but it didn't splash. So luckily, it only felt like Link was stepping on lukewarm water through his boots. He heard the switch being pushed down as the block made it all the way to the bottom. Okay, easy enough. He just had to do that with all the blocks in the room. So he started work on the second pit, then the third, and then the fourth. As the fourth block sunk down onto the fourth switch, Link just stared at the barred door. He heard the fourth switch activate...

Nothing happened.

"Nothing happened." Haizea told him. "Can I get off this giant button now?"

"No stay there!" Link snapped. What did he miss? There had to be something he missed… The blocks were in all the water pits, Haizea was on the switch in the middle of the room… He looked up at the ceiling. He saw a chandelier there, identical to the ones in the main chamber, except instead of one orb of light, this one had two. Except one of them wasn't lit. Not entirely sure if what he was about to do was going to solve the problem, he took the boomerang from his belt and threw at the unlit orb. It hit the orb and then it lit up, brightening the room even more. He heard the bars on the door sink down.

"Now you can get off the switch!" Link told Haizea proudly.

The slave was just staring at the chandelier, seeming to scrutinize the orbs. After a few seconds he muttered, "Interesting…" and then stepped off the switch, heading straight for the door.

Link caught up. "Interesting how?" He asked.

The man shrugged. "It was just interesting. Magical lighting-you don't see it often, you know. It's also probably a good idea to keep the light switching thing in mind for other areas in this place."

They proceeded to the next room. He couldn't tell if the room was big or small, it was so dark. Haizea produced a flame in his palm so they had some form of lighting. As soon as the flame came on, however, a horde of keese came flying their way. After some cursing from both of them, Link threw his boomerang at the keese, killing them.

"See if you can find a light; hit the ceiling." Haizea said.

Link nodded and threw the boomerang up. He had to do it a few ties before he hit another one of the light orbs. Once the room was fully illuminated, a few more keese that hadn't jumped out before flew towards them. Link threw his boomerang again, killing a few more of the keese. Any more that were left over Haizea took care of by slicing them up with wind magic.

"Stupid creatures…" Haizea muttered.

Link looked around this room. It was smaller than the last and circular. There were four pillars and on the left side was a door. It wasn't barred like the last door.

"Let's look around here first before we go in there." Link said. The slave just grumbled something inaudible and stood against the wall. Link should've known he was going to be left to do it alone…

He looked around and didn't see anything really interesting. The pillars were exactly what they seemed like, pillars to hold up the ceiling. None of them cut short an inch or two. He looked around the walls. Between two pillars right on the right side of the room, the bricks were different colors. While the normal walls were whitish, this wall was a grayish color. He unsheathed his sword and went towards the wall. He tapped the wall with the flat of his sword and then tapped the regular colored walls. He tapped the normal and the discolored walls a few more times.

"What are you doing?" Haizea asked, obviously irritated.

"I remember my grandpa telling me that a long time ago when he was adventuring, discolored walls like this were clues to hidden rooms. He said you could tell the difference because when you tapped the walls with your sword flat, they'd make different noises." He said as he continued to tap the walls. Finally, he nodded and said, "Can you blow up this wall?"

The slave rolled his eyes in disbelief and went to the wall. Link stepped back a few feet and Haizea went to work. Within the next few seconds, there was the sound of an explosion and a dust cloud. He then heard the slave say, "Hmph, seems like yo were right."

The boy walked skipped over to where Haizea was. Chunks of debris were on the floor, but more spread out in the hidden room. The hidden room was probably about the size of a small closet. In it there was a chest. Link pushed some debris off the chest and then opened it, climbing over it slightly to reach the bottom. He really wondered when his growth spurt would kick in… He felt around the bottom of the chest and then pulled out a key.

"One key down!" He said happily.

Haizea leaned over Link's shoulder to look into the chest. "That's all there was in there? Such a big chest for a tiny little thing?" He asked.

Link shrugged and stuck the key in his pouch. "There were no other sized chests? I dunno. Let's just get to next place." And he went over to the left side of the room and through the door.

Then something unexpected happened. As soon as he went past the door, it shut quickly behind him. He turned on his heal and pushed at the door. It wasn't opening. "Haizea! Try opening the door from that side!" He called out.

He didn't really hear anything, but after a few seconds there was a response. "It won't move. Try looking for something in that room." The slave said.

Link reluctantly turned to face the room. The last time he was in a locked room, he had to battle Dark Nut and then the floor collapsed on him. There was nothing in this room, though. It was just an empty room. A large empty room. There was definitely more space here than when he had faced the Dark Nut. Still, just in case, he unsheathed his sword and took out his shield as he walked to the middle of the room.

As soon as he stepped into the middle of the room, he heard a garbled laughing sound. He looked around but couldn't see anything. Then something materialized in front of him. It was an old manlike thing in a clichéd wizard's hat and a long billowing robe. He gave his garbled laugh and then wizzed past Link. The boy turned quickly to see a flash of fire coming his way. He put up his shield. The blast pushed him back, but aside from his shield warming up he suffered no burns. The robed old man wizzed past him again. Link turned again. The old man laughed again and then sent another fireball at him. Link rolled to the side to avoid it. Then the old man wizzed upwards… Old man, he was tired of calling it that… Wizrobe. That would work.

The Wizrobe shot more fireballs at him from above. He ran away screaming. That Wizrobe just kept wizzing around everywhere! There wasn't any way of knowing which way he was going to end up going, either. As he kept running and deflecting and dodging the Wizrobe's attacks, he observed his movements. He wizzed around randomly and only seemed to chuck fireballs at him. But when he wizzed over to one area he would stop for a moment, do a little twirl, and then throw a fireball or three. If he could just hit him when he stopped to do his stupid little dance…

The Wizrobe stopped near him and twirled around, Link went in for the strike. The Wizrobe quickly wizzed away before he was hit and then immediately sent fireballs the boy's way. There was no time to dodge so Link threw up his shield. The fireball pushed him back again. He felt the rush of heat on both sides of him as two more fireballs flew past. There had to be something he could do! Something he could hit with from afar…

Gosh he was stupid sometimes.

The Wizrobe wizzed past again. The boy immediately took out his boomerang and hurled it at the Wizrobe. It smacked right against the Wizrobe's head, causing the man to fall the floor and wobble around. Link wasted no time and ran to the Wizrobe, sword in hand he slashed into the Wizrobe's back repeatedly. The Wizrobe gave a warbly scream and then flew out into the air, twitching madly. There was a puff of smoke and then something fell to the ground. The Wizrobe was nowhere in sight. He heard something like an unlocking noise and looked behind himself to see the door from before was opening. He retrieved the key that fell and then ran to the door. Haizea was on the other side, looking very puzzled.

"What happened in… Never mind, I don't want to know…" The slave said.

"Well, I did get another key." Link said, holding up the spoil of his battle. "And it doesn't look like there are any other doors here. We can go back to the start and keep going from there."

They went back through the water pit room and then to the room with the narrow path. That's when Link noticed that the water under the path no longer boiling hot anymore. It still had steam coming from up, but it was no loner at such a dangerous temperature. Could it have been that the Wizrobe was the one who was making the water so dangerously hot?

"Could you hurry up?" Haizea spat from the other sad of the path. Link almost jumped. He supposed there was no time for pondering the water business…

They went back to the main chamber and then into the left door. The room was dark, the only light came from the shimmering, hot, boiling water in the center of the room. Strange… this water was still hot but on the other side it wasn't. Weird. The distorted reflection of the door across the room showed silver bars on it. Orbs then… he had to hit orbs. There would probably be one in each corner, like the big water pit room. He threw his boomerang to the top left. Sure enough, an orb was struck and a dim light filled the room It was about the same size as the water pit room, and Link could now see the other orbs sitting atop pillars on every other corner. But other than that, he hadn't seen much. As quickly as the light came on, it went out. Link scowled.

"Wait, do that again, child." Haizea said.

"Whatever…" Link muttered. Another puzzle, no doubt… He didn't see how striking the orb again would help, though, but he might well show Haizea how futile it was. He threw the boomerang again and it struck the orb. Light filled the room and then faded.

"I see it now…" The slave muttered. "Hit the other ones, one at a time." He told Link. He didn't see where the slave was going with it, but he struck each orb with his boomerang one at a time. With each strike at one of the orbs, they'd light up the room and then fade away back into darkness. And each time, Haizea would nod in some sort of understanding. "Listen closely, boy: Strike the top right first, bottom left second, bottom right third, top left last."

Link forked an eyebrow. An order to which they needed to be struck? But how did Haizea know which one to hit first? Well, he might not even be right but… he threw the boomerang to the top right. The orb lit up. When the boomerang came back to Link, he threw it to the bottom left. Both orbs stayed lit. He threw his boomerang to the bottom right. They stayed lit. Then to the top left. All four orbs were lit and stayed lit. The bars on the door across the room lowered.

"How did you know the order?" Link asked, amazed.

"Look at the walls closely." Haizea said plainly.

Link looked and then he felt a bit dumb. On a space next to each orb was a lightly painted number. Each number corresponded with the order that Haizea gave him. How could he not have noticed that?!

They passed the boiling water pool to the door. Link couldn't help but notice another blob in the water. Since it was still boiling hot, he really couldn't make out what the blob was. It wasn't a switch that much was for sure. Well, if the boiling stopped, he'd make sure to check it out.

The next room was strange. It was a small, square, empty room. In the center of the room, was cracked hole. It had steam rising from it so it made the small room very warm. Link neared the hole in the room, but Haizea yanked him back-and right in the nick of time too. If Link had gotten any closer he would've been steam fried. The hole was really geyser and the geyser had just let out a very powerful steam jet.

"Try not to just walk into traps like those." Haizea told him angrily.

Link just frowned at the comment and went on to carefully examine the room. It was just what it seemed. A small room with a geyser in it. There had to be something more… He looked up at the ceiling. Right above the geyser was a hole. When the steam jet from the geyser stopped Link saw that the hole lead into another room. If they could find something to put on top of that geyser… He took out his sword and started tapping the walls with the flat of his sword again.

"What are you doing now?" Haizea asked.

"I'm looking for another blow up-able wall." Link said plainly.

The slave rolled his eyes in frustration. "Obviously, but why?"

"Above that geyser there's a hole leading into another room. If there's a wall here that we can blow up, then we can use a large piece of the leftovers of the wall to take us up into the next room when the geyser turns on again." The boy explained.

"That's something that I can imagine will kill us." Said the magician sourly.

The boy ignored him and kept tapping the wall. To his surprise, the wall actually did ting differently. He hadn't really expected to find anything. "Right here."

And so, Haizea walked over, Link stood back, and the wall blew up.

"Well, it looks like you can use something better than a wall chunk." He heard the slave say.

Link waved his arms around in attempt to ward away dust. When he made it back to where the wall used to be there was an entire room there. It wasn't a big room but it was bigger than the room they were currently in. Inside the room was another block like the ones from the water pit room.

"Definitely better than a piece of wall." Link smiled. He went into the room and behind the block. Like in the ones in the water pit room, the block wasn't very light. He just started pushing to his best abilities, noting that Haizea was really making no attempt to help at all. He just stood there, leaning against the other wall looking bored. "You know, you could help out." The boy said as he strained against the block.

"I suppose I could," the slave nodded. "But I don't think I will. I'm quite comfortable here." And he said with a smile.

_Jerk… I could always order him to help but…_ Honestly, Link didn't like the idea of forcing a person to do something they didn't want to. He had that kind of power over this one man, but it didn't feel right to use it. No matter how much of an enormous ass the guy was, he just couldn't bring himself to use the man's curse against him. So, as much of a hard time as he was having, he just kept pushing the block until it was over the geyser.

It fell a bit into the hole that was the geyser and Link took a few steps back. He wasn't about to just climb up the block. He wanted to make sure it worked first. So he waited for the geyser to start up again. He heard the muffled hiss from beneath the block and then the block just shot up into the ceiling. The immense pressure of the geyser had successfully lifted the block up into the hole in the ceiling. But it wasn't such a strong pressure that it took the block to the next ceiling.

"Hmph, it actually works." Haizea commented.

Link ignored him again and waited for the geyser to stop and bring the block back down. When it was down, Link climbed onto the block. Haizea grudgingly followed and they waited a moment or two for the geyser to start up again. With the extra weight on board, the geyser was a little slower in pushing the block up but it still managed to make it to the next room. Once there, the two both walked off the block. The room wasn't much bigger than the one they just came from. There was nothing of interest there except for another door, which the two went through.

There was barely a chance to catch sight of much of this room. As soon as they stepped in reptilian shrieks ran through their ears. The shrieks came from two armored lizardmen who were charging right at them. Link ran left, Haizea ran right.

"What are these things?!" Link cried out. A lizardman came at him and swung his sword at the boy, who deflected the attack with his shield.

"Lizafolos!" Haizea answered, dodging a slash the other Lizafolos threw at him. "Attack them when they're vulnerable!"

Lizafolos? Another thing he'd heard of only in stories. They weren't as dangerous as dragons or Dark Nuts, though. He didn't even have to recall any stories he'd heard of to figure it out. Their swordplay wasn't impressive, they weren't remarkably fast, they weren't fully armored, and their shields were just wooden planks. In fact…

The Lizafolos struck down, Link held up his shield and the lizard creature's sword bounced back. The lizard stepped back in surprise, leaving it open. The boy seized his chance and slashed at the creature. It gave a shriek of pain and started slashing at Link again. He just repeated what he had done before until the Lizafolos finally fell in defeat. Glad that the fight was over so quickly he took a breath of triumph.

"What took you so long?" He heard Haizea's smug voice.

He flinched and turned to see the magician sitting on his defeated opponent… A fried opponent, to be exact. Ouch… that hurt Link's pride. He just grumpily sheathed his sword and headed for the next door. "Let's just go…"

The door opened and he went through, Haizea followed still with the smug look. The door immediately shut behind them. Link turned on his heel and faced the door. He almost felt like crying. "Not again…" He muttered.

"Not again what?" Haizea asked. He tried to hide the alarm in his voice but Link could tell it was there.

Before the boy could answer, a laughing, robed, old man materialized in the air in front of them.

"This guy's gonna start chucking fireballs at us now." Link told Haizea plainly. But then something happened that Link didn't expect. _Another_ laughing, robed, old man appeared. "Start running." He said in a small voice. And then he ducked on over to the right, the slave following him.

"What's going on?!" The pale man asked, not really hiding any panic in his voice.

"Wizrobes! They throw fireballs! I had to fight one in the last sealed room!" Link said, also in a panic.

"Wiz-? Did you make that up?" Haizea said, unbelievingly.

"Hey it's cool! Shut up!" Link said angrily.

More fireballs came their way. They ran away to avoid them.

The slave just gave him a weird look and then shook his head. "Whatever, how did you beat them last time?"

"Well, there was only one last time… I hit it with my boomerang and stunned him then attacked." Link said, dodging more fireballs. "I don't think my boomerang can hit both of them!"

"I have to agree with you there!" Haizea said, narrowly avoiding a fireball. Link thought he caught an "Unless…" at the end, but he couldn't be sure, what with all the fire…

The Wizrobes just gave their distorted laughs and kept throwing their fire. It was annoying. It was like they were playing with them! But he couldn't throw a boomerang at both of them!

"Throw your boomerang!" Haizea shouted, skidding across the floor. A look of frustrated alarm came upon his face when a few strands of his strange hair were singed.

"But it's not going to work!" Link yelled.

"Just throw the damn thing!"

Link grimaced and threw his boomerang. He tripped as he threw it but that's probably what saved his life as a line of fire just flew over his head. He lifted his head up to see where his boomerang had landed but instead was amazed to see that the boomerang was flying right at one of the Wizrobes. It struck the first one and to his surprise it continued on to the next one. He understood when he saw Haizea fling his wrist and the boomerang matched the movement. He got up and took out his sword, heading for the nearest Wizrobe. He hacked and slashed at the Wizrobe, who gave a warbled scream with each hit. Like last time, the Wizrobe gave one last warbled scream before disappearing into smoke. He looked over to the other Wizrobe. Haizea was keeping it occupied by thwacking it with the boomerang, keeping it stunned. Link ran over and repeated. The second Wizrobe also vanished in a puff of smoke, this one leaving behind a key.

Link was breathing hard but he took the key and put in his pouch. Haizea threw the boomerang and Link's feet. "There are no more doors… We're missing a key." He said to the boy.

Link thought back to the room with the pool of boiling water in it. "I think I know where the last one is…" He said. Catching his breath he then proceeded to run off back to that room. He wasn't worried about Haizea catching up, he knew he would. Sure enough, when he was in the room, he looked into the pool of water and at the bottom was a chest. The Wizrobes were the ones keeping all the water so dangerously hot! The pool wasn't as deep as he thought so he waded into the water. By the time he reached where the chest was, the water was at his chin. He took a deep breath, went under and pulled at the chest. The water had made the chest lighter so it was easier than he thought. And since there was just a key in there, it wasn't that heavy to begin with. He managed to drag it mostly out of the water. He opened it and found the last key they were looking for. He turned around and showed it to Haizea.

"See, here it is! The last key!" He said proudly.

Haizea just looked at the key with disinterest. "That's great. If this Temple is anything like the last, we can go through the door that no doubt has impending doom behind it." He said flatly.

"Oh…" He forgot about that. He really hoped it wouldn't be another dragon…

So they went to the main chamber. Link handed Haizea the keys and the man inserted them into the lock. With all keys turned, they stepped back when the large lock fell.

They opened the door and went to the next room.


	30. The Great Fairy

This is the chapter that I was worried about. Luckily, my descriptive skills are so lacking, I don't need to boost the rating! Yay!

* * *

It was a very large circular room. Light orbs surrounded the ceiling walls, illuminating the room well. Much like in the last Temple, it had a moat of water around it. However, there was no pillar with a crystal containing a Siren in the middle of the room, or a dragon guarding a pillar. Instead, the crystal hung from chains in the ceiling. Link stepped forward a bit to get a look at the Siren. She definitely looked younger than Molpe. If anything she looked to be a little girl of Link's age; the only difference being the fishy tail. Still, it was weird. There was nothing guarding her…

"Those fool Wizrobes weren't able to finish you off?" Hissed a feminine voice from behind them. It was a familiar, musical voice. They both turned. The hooded figure of Leanan stood at the doorway. She lowered her hood, strange hair flowing out onto her shoulders. Her face was still beautiful, but it had irritated look this time. "A child and a traitor. You should've been easy to destroy." She hissed.

_Traitor? Who's a traitor?_ Link thought. But he didn't ask out loud. Instead, he glanced at Haizea, who seemed equally puzzled by that statement.

"Of course you don't remember anything." Leanan said as she walked towards them. She crossed her arms and swayed her hips in a manner much different than the woman she was before. "The goddesses saw fit to punish you for your transgressions. In my eyes, however, you'll always be nothing but a low-life that had to steal his magic."

"What do you know of me?" Haizea asked with venom in his voice.

She stopped walking when she was a few feet away from them. She merely gave Haizea a flirtatious smirk. "Wouldn't you like to know? Maybe I'll tell you something if you live." And then, as if she were pulling knives from her cloak she threw what seemed to be blades of ice at them.

Link rolled away quickly but Haizea stood his ground with a glare that could move mountains. All the ice spikes missed him.

"I see it now." The slave said. "You're not a witch. You're not even human."

Leanan smiled again. "Of course I'm not a lowly human." Then she seemed to float up into the air in a fashion similar to that of the Wizrobes. "I am not Leanan the witch, I am the Great Fairy of Winter, Leanan! And once I destroy you two, Lord Ganon will give me the power to rival even Venus and then I can become Queen of all Fairy Courts!" To say she sounded crazy would've been a huge understatement.

Crazy…?

"My mom!" Link cried out. "What did you do to my mother?!"

Leanan looked at him strangely. "Your mother?" She thought for a moment. "Oh yes, your mother! I'll admit there was a point in time where I needed to borrow her. It didn't do much for her brain but she proved quite useful!" She said perkily.

He snapped. He took out his boomerang and hurled at her. An ice spike that came seemingly out of nowhere came and threw the boomerang away. "That won't work on me. I'm a _Great Fairy_, child, not a stupid little keese." She taunted.

"Make her better!" Link shouted angrily. "Make my mom better again!" He went for his boomerang again and threw it at her again. She feigned a yawn and knocked the boomerang back with another spike of ice.

"_Give me my mother back!_" He shouted angrily. He felt the tears swell in his eyes and run down his cheeks. That woman had taken his mother! She'd taken his mother from him, she'd taken her sanity! He was going for his boomerang again but Haizea pulled him back. "No! Let me go! I'll… I'll kill her!" He shouted.

The slave smacked him. "Shut up." He said coldly. "Listen to yourself. You sound more idiotic than you normally do." Link just stared blankly at Haizea, too stunned to respond. "This is what she's trying to do. She's trying to put you in a different state of mind so you won't think. Keep your head clear." Then he let the boy go.

Link kept staring blankly at Haizea. Did he just… hit him? But Haizea couldn't… not without… He noticed the slave twitch wildly for a second before shaking it off. He twitched again and shook it off. In order to keep the boy in line… the slave had just exploited the curse of respect on himself…

"Oh isn't that sad," Leanan mocked, "The poor little traitor lost some of his memory in order to keep his little friend from wearing himself out… I think I could almost cry."

Still twitching, Haizea just glared up at her. "Shut up-" he twitched "You-" another twitch, "_Whore_."

Leanan then mirrored Link's expression. Then her blank expression turned into one that said she wasn't quite getting it. Her brows furrowed upwards and she frowned. She finally understood. "What did you just call me?" Her voice was tiny. Her face then flared into absolute rage. Link could've sworn the temperature dropped with the look of ferocity on the woman's face. "_What did you call me?_" She hissed.

Haizea gave one last shake and then gave an evil grin to the woman. "I called you a _whore_. A filthy, low-life, five rupee, whore." He spat.

The rage in her face was indescribable. She started breathing fast, and then she screamed up into the air. She flew down towards Haizea, both arms becoming engulfed in ice and turning into blades. Haizea just kept his evil, little grin. He merely stepped out of the way when she swooped down on him. Link was amazed. Haizea had just done what Leanan had done to him and she hadn't even realized it! And she was n such a rage, her attempts at cutting the slave to bits were all missing.

"Any time now!" Haizea yelled to Link. At first he didn't understand why until he remembered the rest of the slave's curses. He couldn't girls so all he really could do was dodge Leanan.

He waited for the great fairy to swoop back down to Haizea. When she neared the ground, Link ran, sword in hand. He made a horizontal slash at the woman, but she flew out of the way at the last second. Link scrambled clumsily to keep from hitting Haizea.

"Watch it! You could've killed me!" He snapped, but then his attention focused back to the fairy woman floating above them.

"You insignificant worms!" She shrieked. Her expression was even more terrifying than before. "How dare you attempt to use the bane on me!? How dare you?!" Her voice was no longer musical, now it was just shrilly.

"The bane…?" Link asked, glancing at Haizea to see if he knew the answer.

He did. "Cold iron." The slave told him. "Fairies are burned by iron. They can't stand it."

Fairies didn't like iron… So Link was at an advantage then! His sword was made of iron! But he was only at an advantage if he could strike her, and she seemed adamant on being touched.

"Traitor! Traitorous traitor!" Leanan cried sharply at Haizea. Then she just screamed before saying, "I'll obliterate you both! They'll be nothing left of you!"

As if from nowhere, spikes of ice materialized and headed for the duo and no matter how much they ran, more spikes would come and stab the ground behind them. The spikes stopped when Leanan shrieked again. The ice blades formed on her arms again and she made for Haizea. The slave ducked down at the last second. Leanan apparently had paid no attention to the fact that Haizea had stopped just before a wall. The woman scrambled to a halt and Link saw his opening. He ran over to where the woman was and attempted another horizontal slash. The fairy moved out of the way quickly but the sword had made contact with her right hand. She screamed in pain and then retreated back up above reach, clutching her right hand with her left. She no longer looked like a beautiful woman; her features had distorted so much she now looked more like a wild animal.

"Good work, child." Haizea said as he walked up next to Link.

"But I just scratched her hand…" Link muttered. He didn't get why the woman was still up in the air screaming her lungs out. Until he saw that the scratch was turning into a large burn taking up the fairy's whole left hand.

"I didn't lie when I said it burns them. It won't finish her off, though." The slave said. The pale man then began to shake his hands, as if he were shaking water off of them.

"What are you doing?" Link asked.

"While she's busy screaming, I'm going to immobilize her. Then you can finish her." He said plainly. He held his hands in front of him and clenched them into fists. Leanan then recoiled and screamed more.

"Unhand me you vile creature!" She shouted angrily. Haizea just smirked and proceeded to throw his hands down. Leanan slammed to the floor, shrieking so loud and angrily Link wondered if that was what the Sirens' voices sounded like. But he knew there was no time to think about things like that. He ran over to where the fairy had fallen. He slashed and hacked, and slashed more and more, and the fairy screeched and screamed and howled in pain. With each slash on her, she smoked and sizzled; her flesh burning in an unnatural bluish fire. Link finally stepped back, breathing hard.

"I never thought you could be so brutal." Haizea said with a hint of genuine surprise in his tone. Other than that, he looked absolutely satisfied.

Link just stared at what he had done. The woman could no longer scream; all that came out of her distorted mouth were choking noises. The smell of burning flesh wafted throughout the room. A limb would twitch occasionally, but slowly the blue fire took her over. What… what had he done? She was a monster, yes, but did monsters even deserve this?

"Link…?" The boy snapped out of his daze. He turned slowly and saw his mother at the doorway of the room. "Link, did you…" She looked at the rotting heap that was Leanan. "Her hold on me is gone…" She whispered. She smiled and Link just couldn't be happier.

"Mom!" Before he knew it, he dropped his sword and shield and ran to her. He just hugged her. He had his mother back…

Haizea gagged. He was never one for such touching moments. Teary eyed reunions weren't his cup of tea. Besides, at the moment there were more important matters at hand. He looked to the slowly burning pile of flesh. He knew it was still alive. He knelt down next to it and sneered. "Some Great Fairy you are. Now you're just going to die a miserable death… But before you do, I believe you said you'd tell me what you knew of me if we could defeat you."

The steaming flesh-pile's eyes turned to Haizea. It made a noise, a weird retching noise. The eyes went blank and it just stopped moving. The slave's brow furrowed. Something wasn't right. The energy that was once the pile… it just disappeared. Energy didn't just simply disappear… Realization came to him. The woman… the other woman…

He turned and looked at Link and his mother. He was hugging her so tightly. Her arms wrapped around her son gently, but in one hand she held a dagger. The look in her face was no longer that of the woman Link knew as his mother.

The woman then stiffened and recoiled while coughing. Her arms released the boy, her hand letting go of the dagger.

"Mom?" Link asked worriedly. What was wrong with her? She jerked away from him. Link turned back and saw Haizea, fists clenched and in the air. He was… he was using magic on her?! "What are you doing?! That's my mother!" He cried out horrified.

"It's not your mother! At least, not at the moment." Haizea said. His gaze shifted from the woman to the dagger she dropped. It lifted up and aimed for Loreena.

"What are…" Link was getting more distraught by the moment. The dagger shot for the woman, Link tried to grab it. He couldn't it. He missed it… He heard a cloth being torn and a scream. A woman's scream…

"You…" He started, horrified eyes focused on Haizea who appeared relieved about something. The world was crashing down on Link. "You killed my mother…" he scrambled up, waving his fists and heading to Haizea. He pounded his fists futilely against the slave.

"You're so dramatic…" The pale man said. He pulled the boy from him and forcibly turned him towards his mother's direction. "She's alive. It was just a cut." He said, obviously annoyed.

Sure enough, when Link looked, his mother was still breathing. She had a cut on her left arm, but she was fine. He ran back to her.

"Mom! Mom!" He cried.

The woman gave a small groan and shifted a little. That was when Link noticed something… A pale blue light seeping out of the cut on her arm which, now that he looked at it, was slightly burned. He followed the blue light and saw it went back to the flesh-pile that was Leanan.

The pile jiggled slightly. A raspy, pained voice came from its mouth. "Lord… Ganon… Save… Me…" The pile suddenly was enveloped in blue flames and it started to scream.

Another voice echoed throughout the chamber. "What a weakling. For a Great fairy I thought she would've been stronger." Even though Link had never actually heard this voice, he knew who it belonged to. Ganondorf. "Hey kid, I got to give you credit. I never thought that you were the one with Farore's power. You're pretty strong too. I wonder how strong you'll be when we meet next? Hehe…" And then his voice faded.

"Doesn't he sound like a pleasant man?" Haizea asked sarcastically. His gaze shifted to that of the crystal hanging above them. "I'll take care of the fish-girl."

Link turned back to his mother. He didn't really care how Haizea was getting the Siren down, but he had a good guess that it involved wind magic from all the gusting in the room. His mother really was just fine, but he had to wonder what exactly happened. That blue light from before… it was like the one from his memory dream.

"Haizea? What exactly happened just now?" He asked just as the slave was lowering the crystal down.

As soon as the crystal was on the floor Haizea said, "The fairy seemed to have taken a liking to posses your mother. Before she died she possessed your mother and was about to kill you. Since your mother had Nabooru's dagger, I used the touch of iron against her to release her from the fairy's control."

"Wow…" Link muttered. "Wait, Nabooru's dagger? Then what happened to her?"

"Her pride's just hurt…" The pirate said as she entered the room. "Kid, your mother can move… I'm in the house with her, the next thing I know she's interrogating me about what's happening. As soon as I mention you and the Temple, she yanks one of my daggers away and runs off here. I would've been here sooner but the Gorons held me up asking what I doing with your mom." She sighed in disappointment as she looked around the room, viewing the pile of ashes that used to be a fairy and series of melting ice spikes around the whole room. "I guess I missed everything…"

Link smiled nervously. "Sorry."

Nabooru just waved it off and neared the crystal. She tapped it lightly. "So this little girl in here is a Siren?"

"It seems so." Haizea replied.

"So how you going to get her out?" She asked.

Haizea remained quiet.

The Gerudo woman looked at him skeptically. "Oh come on now, how did you two do it last time?"

"Last time, we threw a dragon against a pillar to knock the crystal out breaking it in the process." He said plainly.

She had a blank look on her face until it registered completely. "Oh… Okay, then let me try something." Haizea stepped back in a gesture that said "go ahead." Nabooru smiled and then kicked down on the crystal, smashing it upon impact. As the crystal shattered, the small Siren's eyes shot open. She looked around fearfully at the ones surrounding her. A splash from the moat nearby, however, changed her expression. She smiled and turned on her belly as she saw Molpe waving from the water. She pulled on Nabooru's pant leg and pointed to the water. The pirate just stood there, baffled.

"She wants you to carry her to her sister." Haizea explained.

"I knew that…" Nabooru said unconvincingly. She carefully picked up the small Siren and took her to the water. She lowered her in and the small Siren dove in and popped up, hugging her older sister. After a silent conversation between the two, the little one looked up at everyone else.

"She says her name is Teles. She's thanking us for saving her and asking us to rescue her last sister." Haizea translated.

Nabooru just looked at him confusedly. "I'll ask about this later…"

After a bit, the two mermaids disappeared into the moat to wait for them outside. Nabooru went ahead and took Link's mother and they began to make their way back to the ship.

* * *

Actually, I was never worried about the description. The original plan was to actually kill Link's mother off. After much thought, I came to the conclusion that it would've been way too dark for this story... and it would've interfered with character development... A lot. And I wasn't willing to have an angsty Link on my hands! I already had one in my last story, goshdarnit!

Oooh, we're getting close to the part of the story I've been _dying_ to write out! But alas, we still have quite a few chapters before we get to that.


	31. The Mother's Memory

A short chapter, I'm sorry. I hate it when I write short chapters... And don't worry **keetongu**, I won't rush. I know the consequences of rushed writing (cue memory of of my sixth grade English class). Besides, me rushing is around the same thing as my cat getting less conceited... And that's very improbable. He's a very stuck-up little thing. XD

* * *

They made it to the ship with no big problems. Nabooru let Link's mother have her room since she was still unconscious ("But only for now!" Nabooru said.). The boy worried about her. Not really because of the small, little cut Haizea had given her, more because she was recovering from frequently being possessed by a fairy. After a while, he reluctantly left her alone in the room to rest.

"The crazy should be out of her when she wakes up." Nabooru told him as he exited, probably in hopes to cheer him up.

"Yeah, I guess…" He said.

Nabooru shrugged and then went about ordering her crew.

Link supposed he should've been more optimistic. After all, he had his mother back and she was going to be just fine. And they were heading home right now… Oh, home… He never thought about how that was going to go over. Maybe his grandfather would be so overjoyed about his mother's return that he would completely forget that he ran away… If only he could be so lucky. That man never forgot anything…

He saw Haizea by the rail, no doubt conversing with one or both of the Sirens. He decided he might as well see what the Sirens were up to, so he walked over next to Haizea. He looked down to the water and sure enough, both of the Sirens were there. Teles waved up at Link when she saw him and he waved back.

"You could be a little happier, you know." He heard Haizea say. "You have your mother back. Isn't that something that normally makes a person happy?"

"It is but… I just can't believe that all this time a fairy had taken her away." He told him.

The slave shrugged. "It isn't something uncommon. Some of the more Winter aligned fairies have a tendency to kidnap humans."

"I don't get that either. What's with the whole Winter and Summer stuff?" He asked.

"I couldn't tell you too much about that. I just know that there are two primary Fairy Courts: Winter and Summer. That's all I know." He said.

"And that they hate iron." Link added. "You don't seem to like it either."

Haizea gave him an irritated look. "At least I can touch it." He hissed.

Link flinched. He didn't mean anything by it… but he was talking to Haizea-moodiest person in Hyrule and the Great Sea. Now that he had thought about, though, it was kind of strange. It was true, Haizea could touch iron. He witnessed it when he almost killed him back when the pirates raided their first ride. But at the same time, he really didn't like iron. Not to the extent Leanan did-she hated it-the point was it was a similarity that actually would've shed light on quite a few things.

"Hey kid!" Nabooru called out. Link turned to face her. She had a wicked little grin plastered on her face. "It's someone's turn for barnacle duty…"

* * *

Loreena woke in a strange room. She'd never seen it before… and it felt like the room was swaying. It took her a few seconds to realize that the room _was_ swaying. She was on a ship? What had happened? She thought carefully about it. She snapped out of her daze in that monster's home. A woman was there and she told her about Link and the Siren Temple. The place was dangerous, so she took one of the woman's knives so she could go and protect Link. When she arrived, she saw him and a pale man standing by a quivering, burning mass that used to be that horrible monster. She held her boy in her arms again and… and then… then… the monster! Oh goddesses, did she hurt Link? She got off the bed she had been laying on, standing uneasily in the swaying ship. She clumsily walked to the door and looked around. Strange red haired women looked stared at her.

"Where's Link?!" She called out desperately. "Where is he?!"

The female crew of the ship just stared at her uneasily. She heard a door creak open from the cabin ahead of her. She saw the pale man from the door. He had what seemed to be a permanently irritated look on his face.

"You were with him, where is he?!" She cried out. He just narrowed his eyes at her.

"Don't worry, ma'am, he's fine. He's just on barnacle duty." She heard a voice say from her side. She turned on her heel quickly. It was the woman she had taken the knife from.

"He's okay?" She asked her.

The woman nodded. "Yes, he's fine. He's just pulling his weight around here."

She sighed in relief and then she realized she had no idea where she was. "Um…"

"I'm Nabooru, captain of the vessel, and we're currently headed back to the Mainland." The woman explained with a smile.

"Ah, thank you." Loreena said, mirroring Nabooru's smile. "I am Loreena, Link's mother. I apologize for before… about taking your knife…"

The woman waved her wrist. "Don't worry about it. I'd do the same thing if I had a kid and I found out he was going to a dangerous place." She looked around and saw her crew was still staring. "What are all you lazy gals doing!? Get back to work!" She yelled. They all jumped and scrambled about. She then turned back to Loreena and smiled. "Sorry about that. Anyways, how about you and I walk around the deck? I'd like to ask you a few things."

"I'll answer to the best of my abilities." She said.

The woman nodded and began to walk ahead. Loreena followed. "So, you and the kid are from the Mainland, how did you end up on Wesna Island?" She asked.

How did she end up there… She remembered that. "My husband had recently died in a hurricane…" She started. "I would often suffer from sleepless nights… When that happened, I would go out onto the beach and look into the ocean. It relaxed me… One particular windy night when I was on the beach, a strange light came towards me. It said it needed help and asked me if I would help it… I said I would but… I had no idea what it meant when it said 'help.' It came into my body. I fought back but it took control… the rest is vague…"

"Leanan, she was that strange light?" Nabooru asked. The other woman nodded. "Why did she need help? I'm sorry, you probably don't know the answer to that…"

"I do know, somewhat." Loreena said. "When she came into my body, I saw a part of her… as I'm sure she saw of me. She was in a battle with another woman… Their fight was… beyond my comprehension. The one who possessed me had dealt a blow to the other, but the other had damaged her body greatly. I think she possessed me until she could create another body."

The woman just looked strangely at her. "Fairies are weird…"

"Is that what she was…? A fairy… Could've fooled me." Loreena said.

Nabooru paused for a moment. "I can take the kid off of barnacle duty if you'd like."

The blond woman smiled at her. "That's very thoughtful of you… but what kind of mother would I be if I didn't let my son learn responsibility?" She said.

The red head smiled at her. "Are you sure about that? I have no problems with it."

Loreena nodded. "Yes… I'm not going anywhere this time around."


	32. Understanding

Words cannot describe how much of a _pain in the ass_ making this update was. I got into a fight with my computer... The computer won. I'm submitting from another one. DX

SO GAIZ, WANNA KNOW HOW ON TOP OF THINGS I AM?! WELL, DO YOU?! I _just_ found out... that school starts this week for me. I haven't started summer reading or even cleaned out my bag from last year. Oh yeah, it's gonna be good year. Senior year here I come...

Words cannot describe... how much I don't want to go back to school...

* * *

Glad that the horror of the barnacles was finally over with (for the moment), Link went back up to the deck ready for dinner. Entering the galley, he saw his mother chatting with some of the crew at a table.

"Mom!" He found himself crying out as he ran to her.

She smiled as he jumped on her, hugging her tightly. "My, you really have gotten big! The last I saw you you were so little…" She said as she hugged him back. Some Gerudo were giggling and poking fun in the background, but for the moment Link could ignore it. Then, she gently pulled him away. "Now, now, Link… there are some things we really need to talk about, please take a seat…" Link nodded and climbed up on the bench next to her. She smiled again and then put a hand on the side of his face. "You really have grown up…" Then her face grew serious, angered even, and she yanked on his ear. "Running away from home, fighting monsters and doing dangerous things, hanging around with _pirates_?!"

"I'm sorry, Mom! I'm sorry!" He cried, hoping his mother would stop tugging on his ear. He forgot that she did this when he misbehaved. It was even more humiliating since he was in the galley and his mother was doing this in front of _everyone_. And they were all _laughing_ at him!

She finally let go and gave him a stern look. After a moment her expression softened. "I assume you do have a good reason for all your mischief. I also assume you'll be telling me over dinner too."

And with that, the door to the kitchen opened. "Food's on, come and get it." Haizea said. From the smell wafting from the kitchen, the boy could tell the magician had definitely made something good.

Link looked to his mother and nodded. As they both got up and stood in the line, the boy began to tell her everything. The story, getting longer with each day on this journey, took a while to tell. Link kept telling it even after they had finished their meal. His mother never once interrupted but she listened intently. The boy also couldn't help but note that a number of the Gerudo had stuck around to listen too. When he finished there were a few inaudible whispers among the crew and his mother nodded in understanding.

"I see… You're growing up way too fast…" She said softly. Then she suddenly smiled and happily and started pinching Link's cheek. "But it's so cute! I remember when you were just a little baby! You were always saying you'd marry Zelda! I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you'd risk your life to save her, though I can't say I approve, I know I can't stop you!"

"_Mom_!" Link whined, feeling his face go red.

The crew started laughing and he thought he even heard Haizea say somewhere in the background, "I love it when I'm right." Wow, he remembered when the parents of other kids back home said stuff like this. He always laughed at the other kids without knowing the measure of embarrassment they went through. Now he did.

The never-ending embarrassment did eventually end after what seemed like an eternity. His mother stopped with his cheek, which was really sore at that point in time, and said, "Don't worry about your grandfather. I'll handle him when we get home."

Link rubbed at his cheek. "I was kind of thinking I'd go straight to-"

"You're going home to settle things with your grandfather first." His mother interrupted with a fierce look in her eyes.

"Yes, Mom." Link said quickly.

"_Where's my crew?!_" At the sound of Nabooru's roar, all of the crew scrambled around the galley. The only way out was the direction that the captain's voice was coming from. The door busted open and a very angry looking Nabooru was there. "Lazing around like some thick-headed moblins, are you?! Have you seen the weather outside?! If you're not out there, than you obviously haven't! All hands on deck, _now!_"

The weather? But it looked so clear when Link was coming to the galley for dinner, even though it was getting dark. The Gerudo ran and stumbled back out into the deck. Link followed, more out curiosity than being one of the "hands" Nabooru referred to, because now that he really listened he thought he heard thunder. When he went outside, he had to double-take at the sky. It was definitely dark but lightning illuminated the clouds and he was hearing thunder.

"Oh my… How did it get like this so quickly?" He heard his mother say behind him.

"I have a good guess." He heard Haizea say. Link caught the pale man walking towards the rail of the ship from the side of his eye. He followed him and looked over the rail. The Sirens looked up at them, concern evident in their expressions. "They say it's their sister's magic. It appears Ganon wants us out of the picture." The slave chuckled.

"Why couldn't it have been Molpe or Teles with the weather magic…?" Link groaned.

"Oh don't worry, the storm isn't hurricane force but on the sea it's still pretty dangerous." Haizea said plainly.

"That… doesn't help at all." Link said almost hopelessly.

"Hmm, it doesn't. This will, though… I'd stand back if I were you." He said as he moved to the bow of the ship, carefully avoiding any Gerudo that were in the way. Link listened and kept his distance. When Haizea had the courtesy to say "stand back," he'd stand back. It was usually in everyone's best interest to do so, so Link shooed anyone else away as best he could. The magician stretched his arms out and took a deep breath.

"What exactly are you going to do?" The boy asked nervously.

"You'll see…" He answered. He took another deep breath and then threw his arms out. With a jerk, the ship lurched forward. Link and a couple of pirates fell on their bottoms; everyone else had trouble keeping their balance but managed to stand upright in no time.

Nabooru ran in their direction. "What's going on?!" She asked as she helped Link up.

"What's going on is me giving this ship a speed-boost." Haizea strained to say.

"That's great! How long can you keep it up?" Nabooru asked hopefully.

"Not as long as you would probably like." The slave spat.

Nabooru's face went dark. "What's that supposed to mean?"

Link's mother answered for her. "It means you should probably get the ship ready to set full sail. He can only keep us going this fast for so long… Even so the storm will still probably catch up to us."

"Then we'll just have to make sure it catches up to us at shore." The Gerudo captain seemed stressed but just nodded and proceeded to order the crew to keep preparing the ship for a storm.

* * *

"There's nothing you can do, stay out of the way." He tired to sound like a girl in order to mimic Nabooru. He was stuck under the deck again, in the crewman's quarters.

"Link, you know better than to make fun of people." His mother told him. Since she really didn't know anything about ships, she was sent under the deck as well.

"Yes, Mom…" He muttered.

The ship suddenly slowed and sent Link and his mother sliding across the floor.

Loreena looked to the ceiling uneasily. "I think your friend reached his limit…"

"He's not my friend…" Link mumbled, but his mother didn't hear.

After a few moments, Haizea came below deck looking exhausted. He wasted no time getting comfortable in a corner of the ship across from Link and his mother.

"How far did we get?" Link asked him.

"I'm doing fine; I just need a little rest is all, thank you for asking." The slave shot a dirty look at Link.

"Sorry, but could you please tell us what's going on?" Loreena asked.

The pale man grumbled something and then scowled. "I took us most of the way but the storm is adamant on catching us. It can go either way." He said grimly. Link had a feeling that wasn't the only thing that was bothering him.

Then he remembered something Haizea said once. _"A previous master of mine once told me I was capable of creating cyclones that could wipe a boat off the face of the earth. I can't say I remember a time like that…"_ Memory loss for breaking the curse of respect had caused him to forget a lot of things… Including magic… Back when they were Leanan, the slave was forced to exploit his own curse in order to keep Link from going crazy… Had that last time weakened him?

He felt a hand on his shoulder and he glanced back at his mother. She smiled at him. "Don't look so down. I'm sure we can make it back safely. The captain and her crew seem quite capable." She said.

He smiled grimly and tried not to think too much about the situation. His mother was right. Nabooru was a great captain and her crew, despite being a bunch of big jerks, was good at what they did… besides pirating-which he had never actually seen them do ever since they tried to plunder the boat he and Haizea had been on, but he supposed that was a good thing.

As he started thinking about the bright side of things, he began to cheer up a little more. His eyes soon began to feel heavy. Then again, it was late. He didn't think he had ever stayed up so late. He probably hadn't… but at the same time, no one was trying to kill him at sea before. He was thinking grimly again as he fell asleep.

Loreena laid her son's head on her lap as he slept. She stroked the tuft of hair that popped out from under his hat. It was so strange. She didn't think he had grown up so much. And now he was on his own adventure. An adventurer, like his father was… It was so strange how like the two were. Sure, he may have looked like her, but everything else was like his father. He was going to be great in that case. What was she thinking, he was great now. He definitely had more courage than she did…

She sighed and then looked at the pale man sitting in the corner across from her, looking quite distracted. A young, handsome fellow, she'd give him that. But he seemed to have permanent frown on his face. Some of the similarities to that horrid fairy that had trapped her unnerved her as well.

"Your name is Haizea, right?" She asked him.

"No, it's not." He snapped, seeming a bit irritated that his train of thought was disturbed.

"But that's what everyone calls you." She said to him.

He decided to be rude and glare at her. "It is _not_ my name."

"Then what is your name?" Loreena said, giving him the same irritated tone.

He seemed taken aback by the question. He looked away and gritted his teeth. "I don't know…" He mumbled.

The woman was puzzled. "How can you not know your own name?"

"Your son obviously didn't go into detail about the circumstances of my helping him." He sneered. He frowned at the boy on her lap.

Come to think of it, Link didn't go much into that. She was almost a bit scared to hear the answer.

"I'm that boy's slave." He said bitterly.

She furrowed her brow and looked at her son.

"You don't need to worry, he didn't willingly accept me." He said, his tone lightening a bit. "As far as Masters go… he's been pretty decent… He treats me like a human being…"

She glanced at him. He didn't look so angry at the moment, just tired. And she understood. For years she had been the slave to a fairy. While she couldn't remember most of the time, the parts she did remember… they were miserable. And this man here… From the way he spoke, he had suffered years of different masters, years of different kinds of tortures. Years of watching other people walk by freely… It was understandable that he'd be tired after such a long time of going through what he'd gone through. She had suffered like him, but not as much as him…

"I'm sorry." She said quietly.

He looked at her with that tired expression. Then, he did something unexpected. He smiled. It was a small smile that had a certain strangeness about it… the kind of strangeness that said he wasn't used to smiling. But it soon disappeared back into the angry face. "I don't need your pity…"


	33. Reunited Family

**Okami-Raen**- Wow, you really like this a lot, don't you? Thanks!

My fun is getting spoiled, though... What with doctor's orders and school and... _other things_ -twitch-, my fun is getting spoiled with this story... -grumble, grumble- But don't worry, I will always be updating for you peeps because you're my LURVES! Notrly. D: Still, I do like you guys... Just not in that way. Sorry, my heart's already taken! I know your hearts are broken... heal yourselves by reading on!

* * *

"Link, wake up." He heard as he felt someone nudging him. He didn't want to wake up. He was dreaming that he was kicking Ganon's face in. "Come on, wake up." He was nudged some more. He groaned and grudgingly opened his eyes. His mother was looking down on him with a soft smile. "We've made it to shore."

It took a few seconds for the grogginess to let him understand. "We didn't die?" He asked.

She chuckled. "No, we made it right on time. The rain caught up as soon as they finished tying the ship to the dock. Now come on, we need to go. Everyone else is on the deck." She told him.

Link fixed the hat on his head before he slowly got up. He followed his mother up onto the deck. Sure enough, everyone was there and soaking wet. The sky was so dark fro all the storm clouds but hints of the sun could be seen. It was raining hard and the wind was picking up. Nabooru yelled something at the same time as a blast of thunder. He could only make out "-off the ship!" His mother tugged on his arm pulling him away to the small crowd forming at the catwalk. It was cramped and uncomfortable and the crew was squealing like a bunch of girls... well, they were girls… He was worried about walking down the catwalk with this many people struggling just to get there. Lightning flashed somewhere in the sky; with all the taller girls around him he couldn't tell where. He was really, really nervous. But somehow, he made it down the catwalk during all the chaos. The Gerudo continued to flood down the narrow walkway. He thought he saw one fall off into the water. Eventually, the congestion died down. Nabooru was the last Gerudo to come down the catwalk, Haizea followed shortly after.

Nabooru rushed over to where Link and Loreena were. "Kid, me and the crew, except for Andira, are going to the inn! Come find us when you're heading out!" And then she rushed off, gesturing for the Gerudo to follow her.

Link's mother tugged at his arm again. "Let's go home until this stops." She said. Link nodded and they began to take off.

He paused for a moment when he only heard the watery steps of him and his mother. He turned around and saw Haizea just standing, staring at the ocean. "What are you doing? Hurry up!" Link shouted at him.

The slave glanced at him and then back at the ocean. He smiled, which kind of creeped Link out. "No, I'll stay here."

"That's crazy! You can die out here!" Loreena cried out.

Haizea just shrugged. "I'm enjoying the wind. Besides, you two are in for a family moment when you get to where you're going. I have no place there." He said.

Enjoying the…? What was _wrong_ with this guy?!

"I'll just find the Gerudo later, if that's what you're worried about." The slave said to them.

They just stared at the pale man. He really did seem quite content, what with his light hair whipping his face and all. Link really didn't think he'd seen Haizea ever look this relaxed… And it was crazy to be relaxed in this kind of weather.

"Come on, Link. Let's leave him be." His mother told him, tugging at his arm again.

"But what about-" His mother didn't let him finish.

"No, he'll be fine. Don't worry." She said. The look in her face told the boy she was right.

And so they rushed towards the beach. Past the empty market place with the floor turning from stone to sand, the waves were coming onto the sand at an almost dangerous level. The sand stung them as they walked but they finally saw it. The small little house on the beach, looking quite rickety with all the wind rushing up against it. They ran up the door, both Link and his mother quickly rapping the door with their knuckles. The door opened a crack and one of the old eyes of Kendo could be seen peeking out of the crack. The eye looked down, saw Link, and widened. The door opened, rushing outwards with the wind pushing it.

"Get in quick! Both of ye!" He said.

Link rushed in, his mother following closely behind him. Before Link could get a chance to even wring the water out of his hat, the old man was giving him a bear hug.

"Boy, don't you ever run away again!" The man said, trying to sound threatening. But he didn't. Instead, it sounded like he had been worried sick. Even as Link began to hug the man back, he could feel the difference. He was thinner… and older. More like his own age now… Finally, the man let go and sniffed. He tried to pretend like he wasn't crying, but he couldn't pull the wool over Link's eyes. And Link felt bad for it. "Now, who's your friend here…" He began to turn to Loreena, but when he saw her he froze.

"Hello, Dad." She said.

Then they hugged. Link could see their lips moving, but he couldn't hear what they were saying. It was probably best he didn't hear what they were saying anyways; it was probably personal. When they let go, the old man's nose was all red and hiding the tears simply couldn't be done. He did his best to wipe them off, but it was still evident that he had been crying.

"Link… What have you been doing, boy?" He asked.

And so Link began to tell the story again. Kendo wasn't as much of a good listener as his mother was, often interrupting to ask questions or make comments, but his mother would shush him to let the boy continue. Telling the story didn't take as long as it had on the ship but he finished. In the end, Kendo only really had one question:

"This Haizea fellow… he's the one that put you on that wanted poster?"

"Wanted poster?!" His mother exclaimed. "I don't remember anything about a wanted poster!" She glared at Link.

"Mom, it was all Haizea's fault, I swear!" He said frantically. She yanked on his ear and started yelling at him again.

His grandfather then started to get panicked. "Loreena, I took care of it! There's no need ta be yankin' on his ear!"

Yep, they were a family again.

The rain kept falling, the wind kept howling, and the thunder kept rumbling, but not for very long. Torrential rains like that didn't usually last too long-magically induced or not. The family stepped outside. The sand was gooey and wet, the water level was high with some driftwood washing in, and the frawns of the palm trees were all in disarray. Their small little house had taken no damage but Kendo went around double-checking.

"Well, Link, go on now and find your friends." His mother said as Kendo was busying himself.

"But what about-" He started but his mother had a gift for interrupting him.

"If you want to save Zelda as soon as possible, you need to be getting to that last Siren. You have a mission. I'll handle your grandfather like I said I would." She said. Then she hugged her boy again. "Don't worry about us. We couldn't be prouder of you." She let him go and he saw the look in her eye. Yes, she was proud of him.

"I'll come back with Zelda as fast as I can!" He said. And then he ran off towards the inn. He heard his mother yell out to him to be careful.

_I will, Mom._

He ran right into the inn, not bothering to notice that he tracked in mud. There was a Gerudo in the lobby who happily greeted Link and then went to get Nabooru. He looked around for a second. The girl at the desk was the same one who had been there when he and Haizea had been there. She still had her fake smile but it was strained and she was a bit twitchy. She looked a little, dare he say it, crazy. He had a good idea why. A bunch of pirates just barged in and probably forced all the other customers out. Somehow he couldn't bring himself to feel bad for her.

"So…" She looked at Link creepily. "Are they your cousins too?"

"Nah." Link said, mimicking her fake smile. "Those are my sisters."

The girl looked taken aback but quickly put her fake smile back on. "Isn't that nice?"

Nabooru then came down the stairs. "Hey, kid. About that time, then?" She asked.

"Yup" He said with a nod. "Is Haizea here?"

She looked a bit surprised. "Pale-face? I thought he was with you? Sorry, I haven't seen him." She said.

_I guess he didn't leave._ Link thought. He wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. "We should find him first."

"Do we have to?" Nabooru whined.

"Somehow, I don't think the castle is going to welcome you…" He told her hesitantly.

She looked a bit insulted and said, "What is that suppo…" She stopped herself mid-sentence and finally got it. "Oh… You might be right… How would pale-face help?"

Link growled something and then muttered, "Last time we were here he made me look like a Deku Scrub…"

"He can do that?" She asked, somewhat amazed. "He better not turn me into anything embarrassing…"

So they left the inn, with Link hoping the Gerudo caused more chaos the innkeeper. "He was still by the ship when me and Mom left. He might still be there." He told her, walking towards the docks.

"Still by the ship? Did he have a death wish or something? Being by a dock on a storm is bad news." The pirate said.

So they went on their way to the docks. As they passed through the town, Link noted that people were starting to emerge from their homes. Shops were already starting to reopen, people already starting rush again. That thunderstorm had not stopped Castle Town from being Castle Town. Mere puddles could not intimidate it! Childishness aside, the town was returning to its normal busy self. As they neared the harbor, however, crowds began to dwindle somewhat. The people walking along were different, though. While walking through the town, you found more women shopping around and people making deliveries. Along the harbor, you definitely found more men like sailors, all looking burly and rough. From what his grandpa told him about them, their bark was bigger than their bite.

Their ship was easy to find. While it wasn't a huge ship, it was currently the biggest one at the dock. Haizea hadn't moved a bit and the Gerudo called Andira was grudgingly leaning over the side, obviously upset that she was left behind to watch the ship. Nabooru gave an apologetic wave to her. Link went up to Haizea.

"Have you been here this whole time?" He asked him.

The slave looked down at him, somewhat in surprise. There was something different about him, but he couldn't really tell what. "If you must know, yes. It was a nice storm." He said with a sneer. Yeah, he was just fine.

"You could've died, smart one." Nabooru snapped.

"Oh, you'd shed tears for me, I'm touched." Haizea said sarcastically.

Nabooru rolled her eyes in annoyance and turned on her heel saying, "You wish. Let's just go." Then she gave one last irritated look at him. "Oh, and by the way, you have dirt on your face."


	34. Secret of Castle Hyrule

Wow, I feel like crap today. I spent most of today sleeping because of it. And I still don't want to go to school... This chapter probably isn't one of the best ones, but it made me feel better when I wrote it. Ah, stress writing... it's so good. It still seems a bit rushed to me but... I'm really past the point of caring.

I want peanut-butter...

* * *

There were a few more bitter exchanges of words as they went to the castle. Haizea grudgingly cast an illusion on Nabooru. Of course, Link couldn't see it with his magical hat-nothing but a vague shadow at least-but he didn't think it was anything bad which Link found a bit bothersome. He gets turned into a Deku Scrub but the slave makes the girl he hates nothing special.

They went on their way to the castle, taking back roads when necessary (though Nabooru didn't understand why). They arrived at the Castle gates, the normal two guards in front of it. Link led the way.

"Hey, guys. Let us through, please?" He asked nervously.

The two guards paid no attention to him but were staring straight at Haizea, and uneasily at that. "Take a pictograph, it'll last longer." The slave snarled.

"Um, he's good. Honestly." Link told the guards.

"What about her?" One of the guards pointed his spear at Nabooru.

"How dare you point a spear at a lady?!" The pirate said, brushing the spearhead aside.

"I-I'm sorry, ma'am! Please go through!" He stammered, quickly moving aside. The other guard, who really didn't seem to care, walked aside as well.

"The nerve of some people…" She muttered as she passed the guards. Haizea followed, amused.

"I'm sorry about that…" Link said nervously as he passed the guards. Then he went and caught up to the two adults.

They were walking in the outdoor hallways of the Castle when Nabooru asked, "So, who are we looking for again?" But the question answered itself.

"Haizea! Link!" Rayeh exclaimed, veering off her present course to meet with them. She was in the middle of something since she was carrying a multitude of sheets, but she didn't seem to care at the moment. "Wait until what I… who's that?" She seemed a bit alarmed at the sight of Nabooru.

"No one important." Haizea said plainly. Nabooru just rolled her eyes in annoyance.

The brunette woman still stared uneasily at the red head but she gestured to an area outside of the hall. The trio followed her.

"So did you find anything?" Link asked her as soon as she stopped.

"I did, actually! It took me a bit to find it-the basements are larger than I thought-but I managed to find something. I don't know of how much use it will be to you, though."

"What is it?" Nabooru asked.

Rayeh glanced at her uneasily again but said, "It's a door. But you can't get through it."

"There's a lock on the door, isn't there?" Haizea asked her.

She bit her lip and nodded. "I've never seen one like it. I tried to look for a key to it, but I couldn't find anything. I'm sorry…"

"No, don't be." Haizea said, looking unusually sincere. "You tried your best."

"Why's he acting all… nice?" Nabooru whispered to Link.

"He has a crush on her." Link whispered back. "But don't mention it; he gets really scary when you mention it. He almost killed me once."

Nabooru nodded in understanding and then she looked back to Rayeh. "So did you find anything else, maybe?"

The young maid just shook her head in disappointment.

Link grimaced. "What are we going to do now?"

"I figured it out." Haizea said suddenly. Everyone looked at him strangely. "The basement is where the Siren is being held."

"Thank you Captain Obvious!" The pirate woman said.

The slave shot a glare at her. "A more appropriate title for you. Now answer me this, if that's where she is, where is the rest of the Temple?"

Nabooru opened her mouth to answer but she paused. She closed her mouth, then opened it again and closed it again. A flush of embarrassment came upon her face when she couldn't answer.

"The Castle!" Rayeh piped up. She seemed to understand what the slave was getting at. "The Temple is the Castle!"

"At least there's one smart woman here." Haizea said, looking proudly at the girl. She blushed slightly. "This castle _is_ the Temple. A long time ago, a king was probably so impressed with its construction he decided to make it his castle without a second thought to what it actually was."

"Hey, yeah! I remember at school they mentioned something like that!" Link said. "It was just supposed to be a bunch of old ruins! They added a bunch of things when that king wanted it to be his castle!"

"So we're not even looking at the original… But that doesn't explain how we're going to open that lock." Nabooru said.

It remained quiet for a moment until Haizea spoke again. "Rayeh, which rooms do you change the sheets in?" Rayeh's face went a shade of deep red and Link and Nabooru just stared at him like a diseased dog. The slave rubbed his head frustration. "I didn't mean it like that…"

There was an "Oh…" of understanding from everyone else.

"Oh, um… I've changed the sheets in just about every room, including the King's and the Princess's." Rayeh said skittishly, still blushing slightly.

"Alright, in any room you've been in, has there been anything strange about one of them?" He asked.

The girl seemed to think carefully before saying, "I think… It was a long time ago but I remember seeing a dresser against a wall… but the wall had gaps in it, like it was a doorway… And it was in the King's room…"

"The King's room?" Link asked. The maid nodded an affirmative.

"Why can't things just be easy for once?" Nabooru asked to no one in particular.

"How are we going to get there?" The boy asked miserably.

"I can help you," Rayeh said, "But not right now." She held up the sheets in her arms and shrugged apologetically. "My shift is done at four; come back here then and you can get through that door."

"Are you sure?" Nabooru asked skeptically.

The maid nodded. "Yes, I'm positive." She looked around nervously. "I have to go. Remember be here at four!" And then she skittered off.

"Why's she being so helpful?" The pirate asked.

"The feelings are mutual." Link informed her.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Haizea asked threateningly.

Nabooru snickered. "I think you know what it means…"

"I really don't." He said angrily. "Still, I hope you two know that that woman could lose her job for this."

Link winced. Haizea was right. Sneaking into the king's room… Well, he was pretty sure that was under the "illegal" category. Rayeh could get into a heap of trouble for just assisting them.

"And since when do you care about other people?" The pirate asked the slave flatly.

"I don't. I was just letting you two know that you're willing to risk ruining another's life for the sake of your own goals." He said plainly. It was almost disturbing how plainly he'd said it. Wasn't he supposed to like Rayeh?

Nabooru still eyed Haizea skeptically. She shook it off and then looked up at the sky. "From the position of the sun I'd say we have an hour and a half to kill. What now?"

Link answered the question without having to say anything. He stomach probably echoed off the wall of the Castle. He gave a nervous laugh and said, "I never had lunch…"

Nabooru shrugged guiltily. "Same here… I'd be lying if I said I wasn't hungry." She said.

Haizea just shrugged. "It's not like I have anything better to do."

Nabooru just stared at the man strangely. "You know, I've never seen you eat… Even on the ship. How have you not died of starvation-because it always raises my hopes but it never happens-?"

He smirked. "Isn't it obvious? I feed off your irritation."

Nabooru glared at him and he glared back. As always, Link stepped in between them. "Hey, guys… let's just go down to the kitchen… the chef knows me, he'll feed us…" He said nervously. _Just don't eat each other…_

With a "hmph" from both of them they let Link lead the way. The kitchen was actually in the first basement. The boy always felt sorry for the maids that had to carry the food upstairs; it was much harder than it looked. Especially when one had five plates on their arm. In fact, most of the servants went unappreciated. The king and most of the nobles didn't notice it, but Zelda did. Just about everyone in the Castle liked her. With her gone, some of the servants actually looked more stressed than usual. A smile and a "thank you" really did make a difference.

The chef was delighted to see Link and happily provided meals for everyone. The boy and the pirate practically wolfed down their meals. The slave only touched the bread.

"Damn, that man can cook!" Nabooru said happily. "I'm gonna go pester him for more!"

"Um, you don't have to pes…" Link gave up when she was halfway across the kitchen. He looked back at his plate, not even wanting to see what was going to happen. He didn't have much left; just a few veggies. But he didn't like veggies so he wasn't going to touch them. As far as he was concerned, he was done. He wasn't ravenously hungry anymore, at least.

He looked over at Haizea, who was prodding at the plate with his fork. "I'm not sure I want to know what this is made of." He said.

"It's sweet potato. It's supposed to be orange." Link informed him.

"It looks disgusting." The slave said, putting the fork down and pushing the plate away from him.

There was a bit of yelling and shouting but Nabooru came back a moment later with another plate. She started stuffing her face when she said something inaudible through her full mouth.

"How lady-like." Haizea told her.

She rolled her eyes and then swallowed. "I was asking you what you thought about that maid."

"What about her?" The slave asked, looking uninterested.

"The kid told me you had a crush on her." She said, gesturing to Link, who just gave her a panicked look.

Haizea looked at Link blankly and then back to Nabooru. "His information is outdated." He said plainly.

The pirate captain forked an eyebrow. "Outdated?"

"I did have an interest in her, I don't anymore. Well, I still do have some sort of interest in her, but not one either of you would probably admire." He said.

"Have I ever told you how much of a pig I think you are?" She told him.

Haizea shrugged. "No, but I'm sure you've thought it several times."

"So true." She said.

"Wait a second, but you were worried about her the other day!" Link said to Haizea. It couldn't be over! Not when he had just learned the joy of teasing people about their crushes!

"The other day," Haizea pointed out. "I lost interest today. You see, during the storm when I was standing out there, I thought about a few things. My condition for one, which I've decided I will be over with by the time this venture is done. There were a few other things and, of course, the maid. I've no more interest."

"Once again, pi-wait, what condition?" Nabooru said.

"And how do you plan on getting of it?" Link asked skeptically. He was cursed by the _goddesses_, a curse like that wasn't going to wear off easily.

The pale man's expression grew serious. "I'll get rid of it somehow and those goddesses will pay…"

"Okay, what's he talking about? He looks creepy…" Nabooru said nervously.

Link was actually getting kind of nervous too. The look that Haizea had… it was the same as the one when the man had a sword pointed at him. But it looked even more dangerous because the look in his eyes was just… different… more intense… He was serious when he said that… but pointing a sword at a kid was one thing. Promising to threaten goddesses was another. That was… stupid. And dangerous but mostly stupid.

"Will someone tell me what's going on?!" Nabooru shouted.

* * *

I lol at how much of an ass Haizea is. LOL!

I still want peanut-butter... Damn you George Washington Carver and your delicious invention. D:


	35. Into the King's Room

_**Important!**_ As of today (Thursday), regular update schedule will commence. If you've forgotten that's Thursdays and Mondays. School has started so I probably won't have the time to write early chapters.

Oh my God, do I apologize for this chapter...

* * *

They didn't tell Nabooru what was going on, to her dislike. It really wasn't something that Link felt he had the right to tell her. And Haizea… well, he'd probably never tell her. The amount of abuse the woman could inflict on him was endless if she found out. Maybe he should tell Nabooru…

They returned to the area that they spoke with Rayeh last when four o'clock was nearing. The trio didn't have to wait long for Rayeh to appear. She came, carrying around a sack of who knows what.

"Alright, everyone's here…" she said, looking around at everyone. "The only ones who can get into the King's room on a daily basis are linen maids. Everyday, a few of us go in and change the sheets. I'm friends with the maids that usually do it. They already changed the sheets this morning, but no one really pays attention… She gave me the keys. All I need are a few other maids." And with that, she opened the sack revealing a bundle of maid uniforms.

"You can't be serious…" Haizea said, staring at the uniforms with disdain.

Rayeh shrugged sheepishly. "I'm sorry, but it was the only thing I could think of on short notice…" she said quietly. "And it's only temporary! When you three are inside that hidden room you can take them off."

"I think they're kind of cute." Nabooru said, holding one up and putting it up against her to see how it looked.

"But you're a girl! Me and Haizea are boys!" Link cried out.

Nabooru glanced over at the slave when Link said that. "I wonder pale-face actually… I mean he does have a girl's name."

"Again, I'm sorry, but it really was the only thing I could think of." The maid said apologetically.

Haizea grumbled something but he grabbed one of the uniforms. "This better not make me look fat…"

"See, you're sounding like a girl already!" Nabooru said happily. The slave just shot an ugly look at her.

Link reluctantly took the smallest uniform from the bag. _I'm doing this for Zelda…_ he thought. _I'm going to wear this skirt so I can save Zelda…_ He was attempting to make himself feel better about this but… it wasn't working. It just wasn't working.

"Here, you two wear these over your head." Rayeh held out a couple of bandanas to Link and Haizea. "If you wear them it might hide the fact that you two are male better."

"Yeah, and you'll just look like ugly girls!" The pirate piped in, once again much too happily.

The maid sighed and then gave an uneasy look to the red head. "Miss, I don't think you're helping…"

Nabooru simply smiled at her. "Oh, I know I'm not helping at all. I just like bugging them." She then slipped the dress on over what she was already wearing and tied the apron on tightly. "Hey, why do linen maids need aprons?" she asked.

"We do laundry as well as changing the sheets. Sometimes, the dye from the basins can splash on us." the maid said. She then looked to the two males, who were uncomfortably adjusting their aprons. She tried to repress a giggle. "Erm, are you ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be…" Link muttered. Haizea said nothing.

"I apologize again…" Rayeh said. She reached into the sack and took put what was left in it: four large, fluffy sheets. One for each person to carry. "Everyone take one and follow me. We have to be quick, before anyone notices my shift is over."

Without another word, she went back into the outdoor hall. Link, Haizea, and Nabooru followed quickly after her, the two males seeming robotic because of the uneasiness of wearing dresses. Nabooru slowed a bit, looking at the two pitifully. "Try to imagine you're not dressed like girls. You'll give yourselves away…" The child grumbled but did his best to forget about the dress while the slave just glared angrily, but managed to walk somewhat normally.

Rayeh took the first door leading into the inside of the castle. She twisted and turned through the halls, reminding Link how confusing the castle could be. When she went up the stairs, Link paused before going up. He'd never been in the upstairs of the castle. Well, he had when he was really little but he didn't remember that far back. He snapped out of his small daze when everyone was halfway up the stairs.

There were a few more twists, a few more turns, and then there was finally a large set of double-doors in the next hall, complete with guards in front. The maid stepped up to one of the guards. They exchanged a few words quietly; the guard nodded and then opened the door. Rayeh went in and everyone else followed. The guard looked at Nabooru with intrigue and then looked awkwardly at Link when he passed. Afterwards, the boy heard a whistle from the guard. Then it quickly turned into a howl of pain. Everyone turned on their heel to see a very angry looking Haizea passing by them and the guard holding his shin in pain. Rayeh stifled a laugh as she closed the door.

"I hate this dress…" The pale man muttered, scowling at the skirt.

"I can't believe… he actually thought…" Nabooru looked like she was about to throw up.

"Don't remind me…"

"Um… The secret door is behind this dresser!" Rayeh said quickly, walking speedily to an ornate dresser. She was definitely trying to change the subject from her anxious expression.

Link went up to the dresser after dumping his bulky sheet on the bed, stopping next to Rayeh. As he looked at the big, fancy dresser he wondered why all these rich guys had to get things that were so large. He was sure that at least half of the drawers were empty. He was also sure the drawer was still ridiculously heavy because from the looks of it, it was heavily paneled. He gave a miserable sigh and looked at the top of the dresser. Of course there were little decorative ornaments on top of the dresser… "Let's take that stuff off of it first…"

"Done." Haizea said while flinging his wrist. All the decorations flew off the top of the dresser. Rayeh gasped, Nabooru grimaced, Link panicked. The decorations landed roughly on the bed next to all the fluffy sheets they had brought in. None of them broke. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Don't do that!" Link hissed at him.

The slave gave him a really ugly look. "I want to get out of this dress. Now." He spat.

"Well, how about we start getting this dresser out of the way!" Nabooru chimed nervously. Rayeh nodded quickly in agreement with the same nervousness.

Link brought his attention back to the dresser. "I really don't think I can move this on my own." He said.

The slave stepped forward, looking very irritated. He flicked his wrist again. The dresser skidded across the floor, making a horrible screeching sound and leaving scratches on the wooden floor.

"What was that?!" came the voice of one of the guards from the other side of the door.

Rayeh ran over to the door. "Nothing's happening! No need to worry! New maids; a little clumsy!" she said, voice shaking slightly. She looked over to the three she snuck in worriedly. Her face said it all. "They know something is going on."

It was further emphasized when one of the guards said, "We're coming in!" and the door knob began to jiggle.

"No! Everything's fine!" Rayeh cried out, locking the door.

"What the-The door is locked?!"

Link looked back at where the dresser used to be. Nabooru was already at work on the old door that was behind it. She was pulling at the handle with all her might. When that didn't work she tried pushing, but to no avail. "It's stuck!" she said frantically.

Link had an idea. He looked up at the slave. "Haizea."

He looked down at the boy and smirked. "I was wondering when you'd ask." He looked at Nabooru. "Move, woman." The pirate scrambled away quickly. The enslaved magician made a pushing motion with his hand. The old door burst open revealing a dark hall with a set of stairs going down at the end. The noise from the double-doors of the room was increasing. Nabooru wasted no time and ran into the hall; Link started to but then looked back at the doors. Rayeh was pushing herself against the door full force to keep the guards from breaking in.

"Rayeh! Get over here!" he cried out.

She shook her head. "Just go! I'll be fine!"

"Haizea, you say something to her!" he told the pale man.

The slave rolled his eyes and then looked over to the maid. As suddenly as the look of not caring was there, his expression changed to one of concern. "Rayeh, you'll get nothing out of staying. Come with us."

The maid looked over and bit her lip. She pushed herself off the door and ran into the once hidden hallway behind Nabooru. The doors were forcing themselves open. Link ran into the hallway behind Rayeh. Haizea followed soon after, stopping only to slam the door back into its original stuck state with the help of his magic. Everyone paused to catch their breath. The sound of the double-doors from the king's room breaking open shattered the brief moment of silence.

"What's that door, there?" Said one guard.

"They had to have gone through there! Let's open it!" Said the other. The door started shake.

"Down the stairs!" Link whispered in a panic.

"I can't see a thing…" Nabooru muttered. "What if we fall?"

A spark of fire popped up from Haizea's hand. "Better?" he asked.

"That's so cool…" Rayeh said in quiet amazement.

Link felt his panic rising as the door was shaking more violently. "We need to get down the stairs!"

They all sped down the stairs, Haizea in the lead because he had the light. The staircase spiraled down, and spiraled, and spiraled. Link felt a bit dizzy. The stairs ended and led into another hall with another door. But no one went through the door. Everyone stopped to catch their breath, with the exception of Haizea, who just eyed the staircase cautiously.

"Do you… think… they managed… to open the door…?" Rayeh asked in between breaths.

"I don't think so." Haizea said tensely. "But they will try other methods. I'd suggest that we keep moving."

"I hate to admit it, but I agree." Nabooru said. She took a deep breath and then stood up straight. She had a look of discomfort on her and then she removed the maid uniform. "These may be cute but they're hardly breathable…"

"At least you're wearing something under it…" Rayeh said.

Link flushed at the comment. "Little kid here…" he said. "He doesn't need to know this…"

"I could stand hear more…" he heard Haizea mutter, but no one else apparently heard.

"Sorry." the maid said embarrassedly.

"The light's going to go out for a second." Haizea warned. The fire puffed out and there was a ripping sound. And another ripping sound. The fire came back on and the slave wore a very satisfied look as he kicked what was remaining of the uniform on the floor.

"Did you have to tear it?" Link asked as he started to take his own uniform off.

"Yes." the pale man said irritably.

"Sorry about that, Rayeh." the boy said.

"No, it's okay. I kind of stole it from the laundry room…" she said with a shrug.

"See, no problems." Haizea said cheerfully.

Link heard Nabooru sigh. "Alright, are we going or what?" she asked.

* * *

Truth be told I had no idea what to do with this chapter... men in drag was the first thing that came into my head. And then humor bug bit me square on the bottom. You can call this a comic relief chapter. I still am so disappointed in myself for throwing that in there, though...


	36. The Keaton

This is not an early update. This is tomorrow's chapter posted early because Cane Fay is paying a visit to my neighborhood tomorrow. It's probably safer if I don't turn on my computer tomorrow. Category 1 or not, I ain't taking my chances.

Last chapter it wasnt the comic releif I was worried about. It was having two boys in dresses. I try not to add too mcuh of my guilty pleasures in my stories. I was just hoping to find something funny that didn't involve boys in dresses... But you can't get much funnier than that so...

* * *

Without further interruption, they all went through the door. Haizea put out his fire when they entered. Cracks in the walls supplied light from the outside.

"Did anyone even bother to check this part of the Temple when they were building a castle on it?" Nabooru asked, looking around cynically.

"Probably not." Link told her as he walked around to get a good look of the room. He tripped over something and fell on his face.

"Are you alright?!" Rayeh asked as she rushed over to help him up.

He felt his arm being pulled up by the maid. "Fine…" he groaned. "What the heck did I trip over?"

"The air, most likely." the slave said, seeming amused. That was Haizea's indirect way of saying, "You probably tripped over yourself."

Rayeh knelt down on the floor where Link had fallen. "No, I think it's a… handle?" She lifted a thick ring that was attached to the floor. She laid it back down and then knocked on the floor.

"That isn't the sound of stone…" Nabooru said kneeling down next to Rayeh. She brushed some of the dirt off the floor and revealed a wooden bottom. "It's the sound of a door."

"More hidden doors? This is becoming a bit annoying." Haizea said, as he peered over the two women to see the floor.

Link shrugged and then went over to the place where everyone was crowding at. He started helping the girls brush off the layers of dirt on the floor. "This door feels weird…" se commented. "Like something is carved into it…"

"It does feel it a bit like that…" Nabooru said, feeling the floor carefully.

"It almost feels like writing…" Rayeh said.

"Writing?" Haizea asked. He stepped forward carefully, peering over everyone again. "All of you move."

Nabooru glared. "And why should we-"

Rayeh stopped her. "I think we should do as he says." she said. The pirate gave her an almost insulted look but backed away nervously. Link just followed their example.

Haizea practically dropped onto the floor, examining it closely. Nabooru and Rayeh ended up peering over him this time. He didn't feel original at this point in time, but he had nothing better to do, so he followed the example of the girls again. The slave ended up glancing back at them with a glare. "You're in my light." he snapped. Everyone backed off a bit and the man went back to examining the floor.

"So… is it writing?" Link asked after a few moments.

The slave didn't answer immediately. His attention was still on the floor but he did answer. "It is. Very, very old writing."

"Well what's it say, pale-face?" Nabooru asked impatiently.

He gave her a quick glare and then went back to his floor. "The Keaton will only guide the ones who can carry life, but will lead others to doom."

It was quiet.

"And what does that mean?" Link asked, interrupting the silence.

Haizea stood up and brushed himself off. He then looked at Link and said plainly, "It means you and I can't enter or we'll die."

"Huh?"

The pirate forked an eyebrow. "I agree with the kid: huh?"

"It's not much of a riddle." The slave told them. "When they say 'ones who can carry life' they mean women. All women have the potential to carry life through pregnancy."

"Then what do they mean by Keaton?" Nabooru asked.

Rayeh answered this one. "The Keaton is supposed to be a mythical fox-like creature. I remember stories from when I was a little girl about them. But what do they mean 'guide'?"

"Exactly what it sounds like." Haizea told her.

The maid furrowed her brow in confusion. "But Keatons don't exist… Do they?"

"After what I've seen on this adventure, I'll believe they exist." Link said.

Nabooru then grabbed the handle of the door and pulled it open. "I guess I'm gonna find out whether they do exist or not."

"I'm going too!" Rayeh said.

The pirate stared at her for a moment and then burst out laughing. The maid had a look of sheer insult on her face.

"I'd step back if I were you…" Haizea warned Link quietly. The boy didn't even have to be warned. He knew a dangerous situation when he saw one.

"What is so funny?!" The maid asked angrily.

Nabooru stifled giggles as she said, "You were serious?" She started laughing harder. "I mean, no offense, but you're just a fabric maid. You should just stay with your sheets and blankets."

"_Linen_ maid." Rayeh corrected. "And for your information, I am much more capable than you think!"

"You're a _maid_, not capable! I bet when those guards started banging on the door that was your first dangerous experience, unless you count those ever so dangerous laundry basins!" She started laughing even harder. So hard, in fact, that she hadn't even noticed Rayeh walk past her and go down through the door in a huff. Nabooru finally stopped laughing, brushing tears from her eyes. When she looked around and didn't see the maid, she froze. "Where'd she go?"

Link pointed to the door. Nabooru then scrambled down quickly.

The boy gave a sigh of relief. "I thought there was going to be blood for a second…" he said.

"I dunno, I think my attraction to Rayeh is coming back." Haizea said with a smirk. "If she can keep getting that woman riled up I may just marry her."

Link just gave him a disgusted glare. "Your jokes are not funny."

The slave shrugged, still amused with himself. "I find them hilarious."

* * *

The maid marched down the long dark hallway, still iffed. She was so angry, she hadn't even noticed that there were torches lighting as she walked past them. She did, however, notice the sound of footsteps quickly catching up to her.

"What do you think you're doing!?" Nabooru cried out.

Rayeh turned on her heel and glared daggers at the other woman. The only thing that could've made her stare more intimidating would be if the maid was taller. "I'm going to help Link and Haizea!" She snapped. Then she continued to march on.

Nabooru paused for a moment, still shocked at the girl's attitude. Maybe she was just too used to respect from the women that made up her crew, but her opinion of this maid wasn't improving. "Oh yeah, sure you are! More like you're doing it to impress pale-face!"

The maid didn't say or do anything to deny it. She just kept stomping on until the underground hall split three ways. That was when the anger started to fade and uncertainness began to settle in. The pirate stopped beside her and looked down all the three passageways.

"Seeing as I don't think I can stop you from embarrassing yourself, which way do you think we should go?" Nabooru asked.

She looked at each hall nervously. She opened her mouth to say her choice but she noticed something strange. "Have you noticed that it's been getting misty…?"

The other woman looked around and shuttered when she saw the maid was right. It was getting misty. Humid, she might be able to understand. They were most likely under the castle wear underground water was. But humid and misty weren't the same thing. And it was an eerie mist too. She shivered.

"_My, my, my, it's been such a long time! Two lovely young ladies, but tensions are high…"_ said a slightly warbled voice.

Neither girl could find the owner of the voice. Nabooru unsheathed her daggers quickly and kept them at the ready and the maid stood her ground, trying not to appear frightened.

The mist grew thicker and started to circle in front of them. The circling motion the mist quickly changed into an eddy of mist. As quickly as the eddy had come, it dissipated. Where the eddy had occurred, a fox like creature with multiple tails sat in front of them. The creature spoke without moving its mouth. _"I am the Keaton."_

"They're real…" Rayeh squeaked. Nabooru just gaped.

The creature's head began to shake and there was a growling sound. It was a laugh. _"Of course we Keaton are real! We have lived in secret with others of our kind, only appearing in special occasions, such as now. Have you come to seek the treasure that was left here?"_

"Treasure?" Nabooru said, suddenly perking up a bit.

"I think he means the key…" Rayeh told her, still a bit shaken from seeing the supposedly mythical creature.

"_Yes, yes! A key! It's a very special key that unlocks a very special lock! An evil man dropped it within these caverns not long ago. He left before I could accomplish my mission…"_ the Keaton said almost sadly.

"Oh…" The pirate sighed with disappointment. "Just out of curiosity… are there any other treasures here?" She asked hopefully.

The Keaton lifted its head in a thinking motion and then made a shrugging motion. _"Yes, no, maybe so. It depends, which do you really want? The key or treasures?"_

Rayeh was shocked to see that Nabooru actually thought about it. She jabbed her with her elbow. The pirate scowled and said to the Keaton, "The key… we want the key…"

The Keaton made its chuckling sounds and movements. _"The key it is, then. I will guide you to it. Be sure to keep up."_ It said. It stood up and then skipped down the left path speedily.

Nabooru cursed and chased after the creature. Rayeh was taken a little by surprise but she ran as quickly as she could behind the pirate. She wasn't quick enough, though. Her long skirt slowed her down quite a bit and unlike the hallway they had come through, torches were not being lit as they ran. The only form of light came from the slightly glowing form of the Keaton, which she was quickly losing view of. And since she was losing sight of the Keaton, she was losing sight of Nabooru as well. Soon, the light of the creature faded completely. She was only leading herself through the hall from the sound of footsteps. But the echoing of them all over the walls was confusing her. She couldn't tell if there were other halls or if she was to keep going straight. She finally stopped.

"Miss Nabooru…" She called out softly. "Keaton…" She reluctantly took a step forward. It was so dark. Even as her eyes adjusted to the darkness she still couldn't see a thing but black.

The pirate, however, had a bunch of light but no Keaton. The creature had to led her to a room that opened up to several halls, and she hadn't seen which one it went through.

"Maid, did you see-Maid? Hey… Rayeh, where'd you go?" she said, noticing that the maid hadn't followed her. She looked back into the hall that she had come from. Was she still back there? That was bad. She remembered as she was chasing Keaton that the hall would fork occasionally. She looked back to the other halls and back to the one she came from. She could either go attempt to find the Keaton, or she could go look for the maid. The key was important; they needed it to save the Siren. But at the same time, there was a girl's life in danger at the moment. Sure, she didn't particularly like this girl, but she wasn't sure if a key was more important.

_What would the kid do?_ She thought. She spent a moment thinking it over. _He'd go look for her._ "I guess I should look for her." she ran back through the tunnel.

"Rayeh? Hey, maid, are you in here?!" she called out. No answer.

She did a 360 degree turn. She shuddered again. Without Keaton around it was much darker than she thought. She stepped back and bumped into something. Someone screamed. Well, she screamed, but someone else screamed to. She turned on her heel, daggers at the ready but paused when she heard, "Miss Nabooru?! Is that you?"

She sighed in relief and put her daggers away. "Yeah, it's me… I think you scared ten years off of me…." She could see the maid now, somewhat. She definitely looked scared. The place was creepy and she had been left alone… Heck, even she was scared too. Long dark hallways have a habit of doing that to people.

"Where's the Keaton? Did you get the key?" The maid asked. Straightforward. She supposed that was something she could admire about the girl.

"Sorry I lost-"

A light appeared from behind them. _"What did you lose? Not little old me, of course! You passed my test Gerudo!"_ Said the Keaton.

"Test?" Rayeh asked.

"Yeah, what test?!" the pirate was beginning to feel a little outraged.

"_The evil man I mentioned earlier was also Gerudo. I wanted to make sure you were not with him. If you were, you surely would have let this girl suffer a grim fate here."_ said the creature. The torches of the hallway suddenly all lit. There was a poof and a large, thick key appeared in the air. The Keaton grabbed it with its jaws. _"Another test, now, to prove you are worthy of this treasure."_

"Another test?! What's going on here?! Didn't I already pass a test?! Why can't you just give it to me?!" Nabooru ranted.

The Keaton laughed. _"Silly girl, I can't simply give away a treasure, especially one of _this_ value."_

"Just whose side are-"

Rayeh put a hand on the other woman's shoulder. "It's just one more test. We can pass it." She said.

"_See, this one has the right attitude!"_ the Keaton said happily.

The red headed woman grumbled something inaudible and then said, "This won't involve anymore running will it?"

"_No, no. No more running. Some things are repetitive, but my tests aren't. Instead, you must answer my questions. If you can't answer them, I won't give you the key."_

The girls looked at each other uneasily. Questions? They weren't too sure how it would work out. The maid finally gave the creature a wary glance and said, "We will do our best."

"_Yes, yes!"_ It almost looked as if the Keaton was smiling. _"That's the spirit. Your first question: What are ratlines?"_

Rayeh bit her lip. Ratlines? She had no idea. Nabooru on the other hand brightened up. She was a pirate. Of course she knew what ratlines were! "Ratlines are the ropes attached to the masts of a ship! They let the crew climb up to fix the sails and such!" she said.

The Keaton nodded. _"Correct! H!"_

"H?" asked both of the girls.

"_Your next question,"_ the creature continued, completely ignoring the girls' inquiries. _"There is a festival held in Castle Town every year during the spring. It is dedicated to a particular kind of Fae said to be the size of one's thumb. What are they called?"_

Well, Nabooru felt hopeless now. She was Gerudo; she was from the desert. Honest to the goddesses, this was her first trip to Castle Town.She knew nothing of the place. Even when she was under Ganondorf, she was always positioned near the sea of the desert. However, Rayeh was smiling broadly. "The Picori!"

"_Yes, yes! That's right! R!"_ Once again, both of the women looked at the Keaton strangely. They didn't ask about the letter that time, however. It probably wouldn't explain. _"Now finish this sentence: The scourge of every sea is-"_

Scourge of every sea… pirates? Weren't they supposed to be the scourge of the sea? The maid wanted to say it but she wasn't sure if it was right. If she was wrong then they'd lose the key. She looked over to the pirate beside her, who seemed lost in thought. The thought about pirates being the scourge of the sea crossed her mind as well, but that just didn't sit right with her. In fact, it seemed all too familiar the sentence the fox creature had said. She racked her brains for it and a tune came into her head. She hummed it softly, hoping that it might provide her with an answer. It did.

"The scourge of every sea is anarchy, us pirates-that's what we be!" Who says crime doesn't pay, Nabooru thought. Had she not been a pirate, the verse from that pirate song probably never would have come into her head.

"_Right again! You ladies are very good at this! But it's not over yet! C!"_ said the Keaton. _"The commander of the Royal Guard is married with two children. Little does his wife know that her husband has a mistress. What is his mistress's name?"_

The pirate was sure she didn't know this. She doubted the maid even knew it. Until she saw the expression of disgust on the brunette's face. "Her name is Bertrice…" She said, almost hacking on the name.

"_Once again, correct! I!"_ the Keaton said happily.

Nabooru gave the maid a puzzled look. Upon noticing Rayeh answered, "She's a scullery maid. She thinks she's special since she's seeing a man with high status behind his wife's back. Very annoying…"

"_One last question. Make sure you get it right…" _Keaton warned. _"What is my name?"_

"Your name?" Nabooru said. The multi-tailed fox nodded. Nabooru scowled. She didn't even think the thing did have a name!

"The letters." Rayeh told her. "The letters it was saying after we got a question right! They must spell out its name!" she said excitedly.

That made sense! Hey, the maid was good to have around after all! "Lessee… H… R… C… I…" the pirate thought aloud. "That doesn't spell anything pronounceable…"

The maid sighed miserably. Its name had to be in there somewhere… "Maybe the letters are switched around? I don't think it would make it so easy if it had spelled its name out." She suggested.

"That's a good guess…" Nabooru said. She thought then. The only name she could think of was Rich… but that probably wasn't its name. It was a mythical creature! It was going to have a strange name, but she was sure it couldn't be anything that strange. The expression on the maid next to her said she wasn't having any better luck. _"_Some things are repetitive…_" _The Keaton had said that just before it gave them this last test… Some things… repetitive… "It's repeated!" she told the maid.

Rayeh brightened up. She understood. She knelt down and put a finger on the dusty floor. She shaped the letters on the floor and vague outline of the letters appeared as the dust was brushed off. Nabooru knelt next to her. They then began to list a series of anagrams involving the multiple letters. The pirate became frustrated easily at all the combinations, but it wasn't long when Rayeh noted one of her anagrams.

"That's it!" she said as she looked at the word Nabooru had written down.

Nabooru looked down at the word she had written. She wasn't so sure about it. "Are you sure?"

The maid nodded. "Yes, I remember something. When I was a child, my father had taken me to the Picori festival. There was a storyteller there. I remember he told us a story about a Picori who dealt with a Keaton with this name! It must be the same Keaton!" she said happily.

"But that was just a story…" the pirate said skeptically. "It might not be its name…"

She shook her head. "No, I'm sure of it. This is his name." Rayeh assured.

Nabooru bit her lip. "Fine…"

They both stood up and faced the creature. _"What is my name?"_ It repeated.

Nabooru gave Rayeh a worried glance, but the maid nodded in confidence. They said it at the same time. "Richichi."

The Keaton tilted its head and said nothing. After a moment or two, its disembodied voice said, _"That's right. I'm Richichi of the Keatons and I say you are worthy of this key."_ It stood, stepped forward and lowered its head to release the key from its mouth. Once the key was on the floor it stepped back. If the two girls hadn't known better, they'd say it almost looked as if the creature was smiling. Them the cyclone of mist of surrounded it again and it disappeared. But it said one last thing before the mist completely vanished. _"Gerudo, if you are ever in the area again, I will happily guide you to the treasure in this labyrinth. As for now, remember that helping the child comes first. The lit tunnels will guide you out." _

There was no more sign of the mist or that Richichi had ever been there. Rayeh picked up the key and handed it to Nabooru. The pirate took the key, not sure how she was going to say what she wanted to say. "Um… I guess I couldn't have done it without you…" she told the maid quietly.

"I guess not." The other woman said. "But I was a hindrance, I'll admit it. Well, shall we?" she said, gesturing cheerfully down the hall.

The redhead nodded with a smile and they began to walk.

It was quiet and Nabooru felt the need to break the silence. "So this Bertrice girl, why does she think she's so special? Being the mistress of a married man isn't exactly something to be proud of." She said.

Rayeh shrugged. "She's just an idiot, I suppose. She's convinced he's going to leave his wife for her, but it's obvious he's not. He doesn't really love her. In fact, the man's a notorious womanizer. He's slept with dozens of other maids, she just happens to be his favorite of the moment. She is convinced that the lust is love. It's very sad…"

It was weird to Nabooru to hear all this. It sounded way too familiar. She figured out why. She knew from the first day she let Link and Haizea stay aboard her ship that the pale man was a colossal pervert. Sure, he never made any advances, but the way he looked at some of the girls… And now he had an interest in Rayeh and… well… the situation between Bertrice and herself sounded too much alike. She sorry that she'd probably rip the girl's heart out by saying this, but she had to warn her.

"You know…" she started off. "Pale face-Haizea, I mean-he just wants to get under your skirt…"

She was just about ready to hear the worst of it from the maid but instead she got, "Hmm? Oh yeah… I had a feeling that was the case…" she said nonchalantly.

The pirate was at a loss for words. That was definitely not the reaction she expected. "And you're okay with that?" She asked unbelievingly.

The maid nodded with a small smile and blushed fiercely. "Well… yes… I mean, he's very handsome… I wouldn't mind…" she said, slightly embarrassed.

Nabooru shuddered. She found it a miracle that she could even stand the man's presence and here walking with her was a girl who'd actually be willing to hang around with him and even… She visibly gagged when the thought crossed her mind.

"Um, are you okay, Miss Nabooru? Are you feeling ill?" Rayeh asked worriedly.

"Yeah… as alright as I'll ever be…" she muttered. _I just have to deal with the mental trauma…_

* * *

So yeah, I'll say it right now. No ridiculously long Temple. No, just... no. I wasn't lying when I said I hated writing those parts. So instead I give you a Keaton.

I always thought Keatons were cool. I liked wearing that mask in OoT and MM. And in MM where you actually meet Keatons and they quiz you on the most obscure shiz... Yeah, totally awesome. The name Richichi is one I found a while back. I just wanted to use it so badly. When I got around to this chapter I said to myself, "Holy crap that sounds like a ridiculously Keaton-y name!" So I used it. I apologize for my lame riddle and quiz making skills too. I suck at those, as well. My cousin gave me a riddle the other day. After like... two hours I gave up and he told me the answer. Damn did I feel like an idiot afterward. THE ANSWER WAS IN FRONT OF MY FACE! GAH!

Oops, I ranted. I'm sorry-bad habit... Next chapter is Thursday.


	37. Possession

It's 1 AM, I should be asleep since I have school tomorrow... But instead I stayed awake and wrote this to update after midnight. Hey, it's technically Thursday. If I have the time later, I might write out the next chapter and do a Double Chapter Thursday for you guys. If being the keyword in that sentence.

The fight in this chapter isn't that impressive. I apologize for that.

Well... I'm going to go to sleep now. -falls on keyboard dead to the world asleep- cfjdjbhkrzhdgjdklz

* * *

Richichi had not lied when he said the lit halls would lead them back. After a while, they had ended up back in the main hall of the maze. Heading up the small set of stairs, they immediately noticed the trap door was shut now. Nabooru pushed it open and both women were startled to find the room pitch black.

"Nabooru? Rayeh?" It was Link's voice. "That's you, right?"

"Yeah it's us. Why's it so dark?" Nabooru asked, carefully walking up into the room.

"You guys have been gone for hours; it's nighttime." The boy said, seeming a bit shocked that they didn't know.

The pirate's brow furrowed. "But we were only gone an hour at the most…"

"Do you think it's possible that we had been taken into another realm? Perhaps one where the flow of time is different?" Rayeh asked.

"I dunno…" Nabooru muttered. "Well, whatever. We got the key. Hey, wait a sec… where's pale face?" As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she could only see the silhouette of the boy.

"We got bored and fidgety just doing nothing… Haizea especially. He went around pacing and actually found another trap door. He decided to check it out since this one didn't have any weird writing on it." Link told them.

"Why are you still here?" Nabooru asked.

Link scowled. "He told me to wait here in case you guys came back…"

"How long has he been gone?" the maid asked, concern evident in her voice.

Link paused for a moment. Despite how dark it was in the room, the two women could read the boy's expression as if it had been stamped on his face. "Um… A while?" he guessed with a shrug.

Nabooru rolled her eyes and put a hand to her forehead. The kid wasn't paying attention. Was Rayeh the only one who actually seemed to like Haizea's presence?

"Was it dark when he left?" Rayeh asked.

The boy had a thoughtful look on his face. "Getting dark I suppose, but it wasn't completely dark…"

"And how long has it been dark like this?" the maid said.

"Not too long, I think." The boy answered, shrugging again, "It's kind of hard to keep track of time down here."

Another trap door nearby the first busted open. Everyone in the room jumped as they saw a very irritated looking Haizea come out. "Do you know why being a light sleeper is inconvenient sometimes? Even through this thick door, I can still hear every damn word anybody says!" he snapped.

"You were asleep?" Nabooru asked; a mixture of disbelief and insult in her expression.

He glared at her. "Yes, I was asleep! I can't sleep on that damned ship of yours what with the swaying. I was hoping I'd get some shut eye down here." He told her angrily.

"I guess he's not a morning person…" Rayeh whispered to Link, who just nodded in response. The guy was irritable, but he was just a tad more irritable than normal. Then, a flare of irritation hit the boy as well.

"Did you even check to see where that door leads?" he asked.

The slave transferred the glare to Link now. "Are you calling me a liar?"

"You _are_ a liar!" Link snapped.

"Point taken," Haizea said with a nod of understanding, "But yes, I did check to see where it led. We don't have to exit the way entered."

"So it leads out?" Rayeh asked almost hesitantly.

Haizea didn't glare at _her_. Instead, he gave a slight smile and said, "It leads directly to that basement you discovered the door in." he paused for a moment as if he just remembered something. "You have the key, right?"

Nabooru took it out and twisted it in her fingers, something difficult to do since it was heavy. "Right here, pale face." She glanced at Link then. "So kid, we going straight down there?"

"Of course we are! We have to save Zelda!" Link said it as if it were obvious and insulting that she could not figure it out.

"Okay, okay, calm down…" the pirate told him, seeming a bit chocked from his demeanor, "It was just a question."

"Don't take it personally, woman." Haizea told her with a smirk on his face, "He's just so close to saving his little girlfriend; naturally he would feel he's inclined to rush to her rescue more than ever before."

"Shut up!" Link snapped, feeling a flush come to his face. "I don't-Ah, forget it! Let's just go!" and he stomped past the slave down the stairs of the next hidden door. One of these days he was going to kick Haizea where it hurt…

He heard the footfalls of everyone else behind him as he went down the corridor. The slave had to end up stepping in front him since he carried the light and Link almost had the mind to trip him. A sharp look from Haizea told the boy that the magician knew exactly what he was thinking and he'd better not try it. Why was it just about everyone could read his mind!? Was he that obvious?! Deciding it was better to not think about it, he just continued to follow the pale man in front of him. It wasn't long before they were at another stairwell. Haizea proceeded up and Link could see that the slave had left the door open on his previous visit.

Up the stairs Link followed until he had reached the floor of the basement where they were supposed to be at. It was dark, damp, and cool. The only bit of light that was in the room was the flame Haizea was carrying. He hadn't really moved since his first step out of the trap door so Nabooru ended up bumping into him. She scowled but didn't say anything. He apologized and moved so that he wouldn't be the way when Rayeh came up.

The light began to move, which meant that the pale man had no patience for anyone else and was heading straight for the door. Sure enough, when the light stopped, it was in front of a door with the large locks that Link had been so familiar with now. Except this one had only one keyhole. That was good. If there were anymore he thought he might hurt himself. The ladies went ahead of him and Link found himself scrambling a bit to catch up with them. Nabooru went and tapped the lock.

"So this is one of the infamous locks…" She mumbled.

"Just hurry up." Haizea spat.

She stuck her tongue out at him in an immature gesture. Really, that was something Link expected that he would do, not an adult. After she was done acting like a kid she took the key from her pocket and twisted it in the lock. As was custom by now, everyone stepped back as the lock was released. It fell with a loud clank to the floor.

"Sense any bad behind here?" Link asked Haizea.

The slave stared at the door, but it looked more like he was staring through it. After a few seconds he grimaced. "Of course there is…"

Nabooru shrugged. "Might as well…" she paused and looked behind her at Rayeh. The maid seemed like she felt a bit out of place. "Are you coming with? I mean, I don't mean to sound nasty this time but…"

The maid shook her head. "No, no, I completely understand this time. I know I'm no good at fighting. I'll wait here. You all go in." she said. "Just be careful."

They all gave the girl an acknowledging nod. They passed through the door into the next room.

This room held the same basic construction of all the other rooms in which the other Siren's were kept. It was round, a domed ceiling, and had a moat encircling the floor. It held the same lighting as the last Temple with the strange orbs. Across the room, half in the wall was the crystal with the Siren. They each walked a bit closer to the crystal. Link noted that this Siren was closer to Molpe's age, maybe a bit older. Molpe looked to be in her late teens, this one was clearly an adult. Like her sisters, she wore nothing but her hair covered what demanded decency.

"So where's the bad?" Nabooru asked. She looked doubtfully at Haizea. "Did you mess up? There's nothing here but a mermaid in a crystal!"

He gave her his standard glare. "I was not mistaken. There _is_ something in here." he glanced around furtively, "I'm sure of it…"

All of a sudden Link could feel it too. It was like the hairs at the back of his neck standing up. Nabooru must've felt it too because she shuddered wildly for a second before regaining a sort of disturbed composure.

"Where is it?!" She asked frightfully. Her knuckles were white from how tightly she was gripping the hilts of her daggers.

Link found himself looking around wildly. There was something in there with them but he couldn't see it. He found himself looking up at Haizea. The man almost looked panicked. But he was staring at something. Link looked to see that he was staring at the Siren's crystal. He saw why he looked so panicked now. The Siren's eyes were open. She was staring back at them with a wicked smile. Her face just looked so…

"Big Octos…" Link heard Nabooru squeak. "She looks so evil…" That was the right word to describe how she looked. And it wasn't the kind of look Haizea would have when he went crazy. This look she was giving them was just a look of pure evil. A devilish smile that had such malice behind it.

"That's not a mermaid." Haizea managed to say. His voice was shaking, devoid of its usual smugness. What was it that could possibly have the man so frightened? Link didn't think he'd ever seen him so terrified…

The crystal containing the Siren cracked. Everyone stepped back. The crystal cracked more. They took a few more steps back. The crystal cracked once more and then shattered. Link remembered that every other time a crystal had shattered; the seemingly delicate glass that made up the crystal just seemed to disappear into the air. Not this time. This time that crystalline substance that had shattered just seemed to attach itself to the mermaid like armor. But most of it went to her lower half, sturdy crystalline legs. She stood up on the floor, psychotic smile still on her face.

Haizea suddenly fell over himself and screamed. He was grabbing his head, probably in some attempt to stop whatever pain was in there.

"Pale face?! What's going on?!" Nabooru cried. For the first time since they had first met, Link could tell there was actual concern in her voice.

The boy looked from keeled over slave to the Siren. She was staring straight at him, as if those crazy eyes that were somehow not her own were boring into the magician's soul. Link understood it now. She was talking to him. She was talking but for some reason it was hurting Haizea.

"What's she saying?!" the boy asked the slave frantically. Nabooru looked worriedly to and fro the boy and the slave.

Haizea was still on his knees, holding his head tightly. He was in obvious pain but he managed to barely say, "Ganon."

Both Link and Nabooru understood it. If they had felt panic before, it was nothing compared to what they were feeling now. The Gerudo King was in the room with them. Not physically, but he was there and controlling a Siren.

The possessed mermaid looked at Link, releasing its grip on the slave who struggled to stand straight again. She gave Link a condescending smile, one that didn't need words to understand it. After taunting the boy in her own way she glanced at Nabooru and froze. The expression went blank for a moment and then turned to one of pure hate and spite. Without another moment of taunting, a wave of water from the moat surrounding the group went straight for Nabooru.

The pirate and the boy managed to evade the wave without much trouble. The slave had a little more trouble since he was still recovering from the words of Siren-Ganon, but he managed to escape it, only getting a bit wet.

"Well, I guess he's still a bit angry about me defecting…" Nabooru muttered nervously.

"You think?!" Haizea spat.

They looked back at the mermaid. She stared at all of them with contempt. She slapped her hands together and closed her eyes. Her lips moved slightly, but no noise came out.

"What's she doing?" Link asked uneasily.

The slave looked at the possessed Siren questioningly and then had a look of concern on his expression. "Move." He said. "Scramble, run, just keep moving." And without another word he took off.

They didn't even shout and ask questions, they just followed his example and ran around. A few seconds later they were glad they did. Right where their little group had been standing, a blast of lightning struck.

"What was that?!" Link found himself shouting frantically.

"She's the Siren in charge of weather, remember?" Nabooru shouted to him from where she was across the room. Another blast of lightning appeared in her area. She squeaked but wasn't hit.

Lightning kept striking in areas of the room; all they could do was keep running. Link wasn't stupid; he knew what Ganon was trying to do. He was trying to keep them all apart so they couldn't plan a strategy. And if he figured it out, chances were the adults had figured this out as well. But if they didn't keep moving they would become lightning rods. None of them could really think clearly either what with the running for their lives and everything…

The boy cussed as a bolt of lightning struck somewhere nearby him. He didn't hesitate to find out exactly where. That tingly warm feeling was enough to assure him that it was too close for comfort.

There had to be something they could do…

As he kept running around randomly, he looked over at the mermaid. She was standing on her glass legs, still looking like she was praying and blasting down lightning. Glass legs?

Haizea realized it before he did. "Break her legs!" the slave cried out.

"And how do we do that, genius?!" Nabooru yelled angrily as she jumped out of the way of a lightning blast.

The slave actually stopped running. He muttered something that was probably impolite and then made that pushing motion with his arms. Link felt a gust of wind push him a bit, but the bulk of it hit the Siren. The mermaid was knocked out of her trance and staggered a moment, trying to reclaim her balance.

Link had an idea. He took his boomerang from his belt and chucked it at the mermaid's fragile legs. The boomerang smashed against the crystal-like limbs and shattered them, but not completely. Then, the mermaid did something unexpected. She squealed. As soon as the sound came from her mouth, the boy felt a sharp, searing pain erupt in his skull. His hands shot straight for his ears. His boomerang passed him but it was either retrieve it or have his brains decorate the floor. He saw Nabooru clap her hands over her ears too. Haizea didn't even flinch in surprise this time.

As soon as the mermaid regained her balance on her shortened legs, she smiled wickedly at the sight of two of the three people clasping their ears desperately. It appeared Ganon had forgotten what the voice of a Siren could do to normal people, but he was quickly reminded of it this time. Link looked at Nabooru worriedly from across the room. She mimicked his expression. The Siren opened her mouth and took a breath. She was about to scream shrilly, but she just suddenly began to choke. Nabooru gave Link a strange look and then she glanced over at Haizea. Link followed.

The slave was staring at the Siren with utter disdain. His hands were making a strangling motion at the air. "Your voice is annoying." he sneered. His hands clenched into fists, as if they were crushing insects. The Siren grabbed for her throat, struggling against the invisible force choking her. Then, Haizea just let go and Siren took a deep breath. The Siren then stared at the slave bitterly.

"Why didn't you just choke her?!" Nabooru cried out angrily at the slave. The Siren turned angrily at her and sent a wave of water from the moat her way. The pirate hadn't even noticed it. The water crashed into her and slammed harshly into the floor.

"Captain!" Link cried out as he ran towards where the water had crashed.

The pirate coughed out some water. "I'm fine…" she choked out. Link still went over and tried to help her up.

The Siren had a satisfied look in her face, but it changed to shock when Haizea threw another gust of wind at her. Link flinched when he saw the mermaid open her mouth to shriek, but nothing came out.

The boy didn't hide his surprise. "She can't make any noise…" he said almost disbelievingly. Then he remembered, while the Siren as staggering and stumbling. He reached for his boomerang. It wasn't there. He looked around frantically. It was where he had been standing before. He remembered now; it flew past him when the mermaid had squealed earlier.

He was ready for the worst when he saw that Nabooru was no longer doubled over next to him. Now she was running towards where the Siren was stumbling clumsily. She slid down on the damp floor, giving the Siren's fragile glass legs a sliding kick. The mermaid fell flat on her face, parts of her makeshift legs crumbling from the force of that kick. The pirate quickly rose from the floor, managing to keep her footing on the slippery floor. The Siren tried to lift herself from the floor but her hands slid on the floor. And Nabooru wouldn't let her. She kicked down on the mermaid's back, forcing the creature back to the floor. Then she went ahead and stepped on the makeshift legs, crushing them along with crushing her tail. The Siren screamed silently. Her mouth was open but nothing was coming out.

Link looked at the pirate, almost horrified. She was angry. She was really angry. "Stop it!" the boy cried out as he ran over to where the two girls were. Nabooru ignored him. She just kept slamming her feet down on the Siren's tail. Her crystal legs were not there anymore, just shattered glass around the fishy part of the mermaid. "_Stop it!_" he repeated, this time angrily.

Nabooru jerked at the sound of his voice and stopped. She glanced at the boy, almost dazed. From the vacant look in her expression, Link finally came to an understanding of something… that violence wasn't just a switch one could turn on or off at a moment's notice. But he quickly forgot it when Nabooru was knocked down by an unseen force.

"You're in the way." Haizea snapped as he neared them.

"Dammit, pale face! Don't use any of your magic crap on me!" Nabooru shouted angrily.

The slave ignored her and looked at the mermaid. "Boy, turn the fish-woman around." He said.

Link nodded and then bent down to look at the Siren, ignoring the yelling of the pirate telling the enslaved magician to do it himself. The mermaid wasn't moving and her tail was bloody and bruised, but she was breathing. He turned her around as best he could. It was much easier said than done. And when he had finished, he scrambled back embarrassedly as he realized he had touched a place that he had always understood a person shouldn't touch on a lady. He was knocked out of his embarrassment when he heard Nabooru.

"Oh goddesses…" she looked horrified. "I didn't… I didn't kill her, did I? Oh gods, I didn't mean to…" she said, a whimper in her voice.

Haizea gave the fallen mermaid a cursory examination. "She is alive, stop crying." he told the pirate.

Nabooru still stared at the Siren with a horrified glance. "But all the… She's gonna be fine… right?"

The slave stared unnervingly at the Siren. "As soon as we get Ganon out of her, yes." he said.

"Wait, he's still in her?" Link asked. The slave nodded, uneasy eyes still on the Siren. The boy's legs started shaking… not because he was scared, though. He was terrified.

Nabooru bit her lip. "How do we get him out? He's definitely trying to wake her up right now…"

"I have an idea…" Haizea muttered.

"What is it?" Nabooru asked impatiently.

The slave remained silent.

Link had an idea why he was so out of it. "You're gonna have to touch her, aren't you?" he said.

The pale man just nodded uneasily. The pirate had a puzzled look on her face. "What's the problem, pale-face? You're an immense pig, you shouldn't mind this." she said.

Haizea glared at her. "That's none of your concern!" he snapped. The ferocity in which he said it actually caused Nabooru to flinch. Even Link was bit surprised at how the comment came out. The pale-man was a lecher, it was true; to actually _touch_ a girl was completely different for him.

"What's his problem?" Nabooru muttered to Link.

"Just drop it…" the boy said. The pirate frowned but said nothing more.

"Hold her up. Quickly." The man demanded.

The pirate and the boy both grimaced. Nabooru walked around the Siren, gently grabbing her shoulders to pull her up. The mermaid shifted uncomfortably as she was lifted. The boy found himself holding his breath as he watched the fish-tailed woman's eyelids flutter slightly.

"Move." Haizea hissed at him. Link jumped and scrambled a little further away. The slave knelt down to the Siren's level and stared uncomfortably at her. After a moment of mental preparation, he wringed his wrists and then reluctantly put a palm on each of her temples. Both the slave and the mermaid jerked violently. The Siren's eyes shot open with rage and fury. Haizea just looked like he was in a constant stream of a pain. Despite the obvious look of indescribable pain, his concentration was on the Siren. She stopped jerking and stiffened, shuddering only slightly with a blank expression on her face. She became limp but Haizea still kept a firm grip on her head. He looked like he was reaching his breaking point.

"Is he going to be okay?" Nabooru asked Link. She sounded like she was concerned about him again, but she didn't let go of the woman in her grip.

The boy just watched the magician and the limp mermaid. Memories from when they first rescued Molpe came into his head. "No."

The Siren then began to jerk wildly, surprising the Gerudo holding her. To control her flailing, Nabooru forced both of the mermaid's arms behind her back. Haizea still kept his hands on the head of the woman. Link noticed that the Siren was giving the slave a death glare again. She gave him possibly the most evil look he had ever seen. So evil it actually blew Haizea back, sending him flying a few feet in the air before crash landing into the floor. He didn't move.

"Haizea!" Link ran over to where the fallen slave lay. He was knocked out cold, but fine. And for some reason, he was relieved to find this out.

"Kid!" Nabooru called. "The Siren she's…"

The boy turned quickly to see what was wrong.

"I think she's fine…" the pirate said, looking over the limp figure of the mermaid she held.

Link gave a sigh of relief. The moment of relief was ruined when he felt water splashing on him. He turned to the moat. The other Sirens were in the water, smiling happily at the creature in Nabooru's arms. Teles was the first one to notice the cuts in her sister's tail and shot a glare at Link.

"It happened during the fight." The boy said quickly and nervously. He didn't want to get on their bad sides.

Nabooru carried the Siren over to the moat and slid her in the water. Upon feeling the water on her skin, she woke up groggily. Then her eyes shot open and she looked around quickly. The Gerudo and the boy watched the three sisters join in a joyful group hug. He heard a sniff next to him and glanced up at the woman next to him.

"Are you crying?" he asked.

"No!" she said quickly, brushing her arm over her eyes. "… Okay, maybe I am…"

"Stupid… woman…"

They both turned on their heels in surprise when they saw Haizea staggering up.

"Crying over something so insignificant…" he muttered as he neared the two.

"Insignificant to you…" she sneered. "You are you should be walking, pale face?"

"I'm fine," he said sourly. "Just a bit tired…"

Link looked up at the magician now standing by them. "Something's different about you…" he said.

"Yeah, he's beat all to hell." Nabooru said. "We should probably get out of here-not that I care what happens to you, pale face. We got all three Sirens freed, so we can go beat down Ganondorf now!"

Link shuddered at the name and to his surprise, so did Haizea. If it was even possible, the slave actually got paler.

"What's with you?" the pirate asked, noting the slave's reaction.

"The fish-woman… when I was inside her head…" he shuddered. "He wants us all dead." He faced Link. "You especially. You have something he wants, apparently."

"Something he wants?" Link squeaked. "What…?"

Haizea straightened up then and shook whatever was bothering him out. He took a deep breath and then faced the boy again nonchalantly "I don't know. He seemed to know something about me as well." Then he had a look as if he just remembered something. He faced Nabooru now. "Oh yes, he told me to tell you that he hates you now."

"Tch," the pirate started, "The feeling's mutual… for both of you."

The slave gave her a flat look. "That's not very lady-like."

She did a raspberry.

"Or mature."

And then the two began to bicker again. Yes, things were normal again… not really. Ganondorf… he was waiting for them now… He felt his knees buckle. When that Siren they had just rescued was possessed by Ganon… He was scared to death. He never really did stop to think how scary Ganondorf was… And he had to face him next… A grim thought came into his mind. _None of us can beat him…_

"_You will know when it will be of use."_ The Great Deku Tree's words came into his mind. That's right. Before they knew that Hyrule Castle was the Temple, they tried to look for the Temple in the forest. A gateway that was of no importance at the time was there… but the Great Deku Tree said that he'd know when it would be of use. And right now… it was like he felt something calling to him.

"Hey guys," Link said, interrupting the newest argument of his two adult companions. "Before we head out again, let's stop by the forest."


	38. Return to the Forest

Update schedule has changed-Sundays and Thursdays. Mondays will be too difficult to update on because of school. What with homework and school club meetings, Mondays are just not ideal days for updates. Sunday, on the other hand, is a great day. It's the weekend, so I have the whole day to add any last minute changes and I just have time in general. So starting right now, updates are Sundays and Thursdays. Happy Sunday.

* * *

If there were any complaints, he promptly ignored them. After spending so much time with two whiners, he was getting pretty good at drowning things out.

They exited the chamber and Rayeh was waiting for them. She asked if everyone was alright because she heard a bunch of noise, other girl stuff… Not important… Goddesses, Haizea was rubbing off on him-and he was pretty sure it was a bad thing!

So distracted by the contamination in his brain everyone looked at him funny.

Rayeh had a concerned expression. "Are you okay…?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah… fine." he said unconvincingly.

Everyone shrugged it off.

Rayeh went ahead and led them from the basement to the stairs to the upper basements. They eventually ended up in the kitchen, which was empty. It was probably still the middle of the night but it couldn't have worked out better. They managed to get out of the castle without any problems.

"So, you're going to the forest now?" Rayeh asked them when they were out in the deserted streets of the town.

Link nodded. "Yeah. There's something I need there." he paused for a moment, "I think…"

"I guess you lost your job didn't you?" Nabooru said to the maid.

She nodded sadly in return. "Those guards saw my face… If I wasn't fired then, I will be tomorrow." she said. She tried to appear okay with it, but it wasn't a very convincing performance.

"Sorry…" It was Haizea who said the comment, and for a second, it looked like he actually meant it. But only for a second.

"No, it's fine. If it means it'll save the princess then I am sure I will manage." she said, perking up a bit. She still didn't look totally okay with the situation.

And so, they left the maid after she assured them she would be fine. Link wasn't quite sure if that was true. He was pretty sure all the maids in the castle lived there. If she really was out of a job, then where did she have to go?

"Don't think about it." Haizea told them as they kept walking. "She's an adult, she can handle herself."

Link frowned. He never really understood why everyone said that… that adults could handle themselves… Maybe it was because he was a kid and not an adult, but he just couldn't see how anyone could handle themselves after a situation like the one Rayeh had been through.

The boy took the lead again, heading outside of town. He could hear Nabooru asking where exactly the forest was, but Haizea told her to shut up and just follow them. Another fight broke out but he didn't bother to try and stop them. It really wasn't worth it anymore to try and stop their fighting. He just kept walking, only knowing that two hadn't killed each other yet by hearing them bicker behind him. To pass his own time while walking towards the forest… well, Link didn't really do anything. He didn't even really think. Somehow, he just wasn't in the mood to think… or do anything really. He just felt bad for leaving Rayeh without a job and most likely a place to live as well… Earlier, Haizea had warned him about that, that he would be willing to sacrifice her job for this… He was sure he could do it then but now… He didn't think it would weigh so heavily on his conscience.

A flicker of blue light popped out from the forest's edge and flitted towards them.

"What's that?" Nabooru asked warily.

It took a second for Link to recognize it. "Navi?"

The fairy came and circled around Link happily. "It's good to see you again!" she said as she kept flitting about the boy.

Haizea just watched the fairy in annoyance. "What do you want?" he asked it coarsely.

"You have no people skills…" Nabooru said to him. He ignored her.

"Oh, the Great Deku Tree told me to come and lead Link to the gatepost!" the fairy said, ignoring the pale man's bitter attitude. She flitted in front of Link. "He says that it's time and you need what's in the gate."

"Um, time for what?" Link asked.

The fairy paused. "I don't know, but I have a good guess… Anyways, follow me!" And then she sped a bit ahead.

"Wait!" Nabooru called to the small, flying creature. Navi turned and looked back at the pirate. "Can we come too or do we have to wait here?"

Once again, the fairy paused. "The Deku Tree said Link specifically…" she stared, "But he didn't no one else couldn't come."

"That sounds like a yes." Haizea said.

"Then everyone keep up!" said the fairy. And then she sped off into the forest. She wasn't going that fast so the most everyone had to do was speed walk to catch up with her.

It wasn't that far into the forest, but all the winding that Navi did to get there made it very confusing. He was really hoping that she'd be there to lead them out. He also wondered why she was winding around too but he had a good guess. The way her wings fluttered, her jitterier than normal movement, she was nervous about something. Did she think they were being followed? He shuddered at the thought. He wouldn't put it past Ganondorf to somehow be watching them… He took a cursory look back tat his two companions. He had a feeling that Haizea was thinking what he was thinking judging from the serious look he had. Nabooru, on the other hand, was looking at her pants frustratingly, probably upset about the grass stains. He guessed he could understand why she was so unconcerned. She wasn't with them the first time around so she really had no idea what was going on.

Navi had finally led them into a clearing and fluttered on ahead towards a large gate. It had thick looking doors and appeared to be made of black stone. The doors had an insignia engraved into it. Link recognized it as the crest of the Royal Family. The pillars that held the doors also had something engraved in them. It was any kind of insignia, though. They were more like decorative carvings of people… but not people. It was strange. Some of the carvings reminded Link of fairies like Navi, while some of the other carvings reminded Link of Leanan. He shuddered at the remembrance of the delusional Great Fairy. What was weird about this gate was the fact that it was the only thing there. There was no fence blocking attached to the posts, one could just walk around it. The boy walked on over and took a look behind the gates. Nothing there. Weird, what so important about this place, then?

He went back to where the others were. Nabooru seemed mildly intrigued by the place; no doubt the strange sense of peace the forest gave off was something she wasn't used to. Haizea looked quite different, however. Link couldn't help but remember the first Siren Temple and how anxious the slave had looked while in there. He looked the same now, except he was staring straight at the gate doors. The boy would be lying if he said he wasn't confused. He was sure that door was made of stone, not metal, and there was nothing behind it either. Brushing it to the back of his mind, he looked back at the dark doors. Navi was flitting around them in a panic. Link walked over curiously.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

The blue fairy turned to him, shaking around erratically. "The gate's not open! The magic that powered it is gone!" she said frantically.

"But there's nothing behind the gate." the boy pointed out.

"No, no, no! Listen!" the fairy said, sounding a little angry. "The gate is magical! It doesn't lead _there_, it leads somewhere else! But without its magic, you can't even make the doors budge!"

Nabooru jumped into the conversation. "Then what about pale face? He knows magic."

"He's just a human, he doesn't have nearly enough power to charge the gates!" Navi said.

Haizea shot a look at her. "As much as she underestimates me, she's right." He muttered, still keeping his venomous gaze on the fairy. After a short moment he looked back at the gate. "And even if I could, I wouldn't."

"Why not?" Link asked.

The slave looked at him angrily for a second and then transferred to the black doors. "The feeling I am getting from behind that gate… I hate it."

"I already like what's behind there." Nabooru said with a smirk. "But how are we going to get whatever it is if we can't open it?"

"It can be opened." Navi said. "But the only one who can open it hasn't been seen in years…"

"Who is it?" the boy asked.

The fairy paused a moment, as if she was thinking if it was okay to tell. "Venus," she said when she was done thinking it over. "The Fairy Queen."

"Fairy… Queen?" Nabooru said awkwardly. Even though she had just repeated it, it looked like she hadn't quite registered it.

Well, he'd said it before. After all he'd seen on this trip, he was willing to believe just about anything. "How do we find her?"

"I don't know…" the fairy said sadly. "Like I said, no one has seen her in years. It was rumored that she'd been killed by a fairy called Leanan, but since she hasn't been replaced…"

He grimaced. Even in death the Great Fairy still managed to mess things up more for Link. "If she's missing then how can we find her?" he thought out loud.

That was when Haizea took his attention off of the gate and fidgeted while muttering, "There is someone who might know where she is…"

"Who?!" Link asked quickly.

The slave mumbled something inaudible.

Nabooru rolled her eyes. "Speak up, pale face, we can't hear you." she told him.

The pale man gritted his teeth. "Dietrich…"

The boy didn't think he'd hear that name again. He didn't really take too much of a liking to the man. Maybe it was because the guy was a sadist or because something about him just seemed off… whatever the reason was, seeing that man again wasn't exactly anywhere in Link's plans… well, if he had any plans. He really just made everything up as he went along.

"Who's that?" the pirate asked, interrupting the child's train of thought.

Haizea used a particularly foul word to answer the woman's question.

"Sounds like a great guy." She said with a smile. The slave just scowled.

"This Dietrich fellow…" Navi said to Link. "Do you think he can help?"

He shrugged. "Maybe."

"He can." Haizea assured. "I spent a good deal of time with that man and I hardly found out anything about him. One of the few things I did manage to find out about him is that he's quite knowledgeable when it comes to fairies."

Navi still seemed uneasy.

"Well, we don't really have any other leads and you did say I had to get whatever is through that gate… We might as well go." Link said.

"I'm fine with that. Anyone who can make pale face cringe is good in my book." Nabooru said.

The blue fae thought for a moment more and then said, "Okay then… I'll lead you back out." And she fluttered on back into the forest.

The trip out seemed easier than the trip in and Link noticed that the sky was getting lighter. He guessed that the trip back to Dietrich's island was a good thing. It wasn't that far away but it was far enough so that when they got back onto the ship he could get a little bit of sleep. He had just spent a night without sleep, something which he wasn't exactly used to. When they had reached the edge of the forest, Navi left them saying she couldn't leave but she would wait for them.

They headed back into town towards the harbor and Link noticed that a few people were already up and walking around town despite the hour. He didn't really understand how some people could just love the morning so much.

"Looking so glum, pale face." He heard Nabooru taunt Haizea. "This Dietrich guy must really get on your nerves, huh?"

"Dietrich? Did you say Dietrich?" Link heard the voice come from behind them and he immediately recognized it.

"Evan?" he asked as he turned to see the young man standing there looking a bit rattled. So rattled, in fact, that he dropped the large bag he normally lugged around with him.

"Did she just say Dietrich?" he asked Link.

Nabooru seemed a bit creeped out but she nodded. "Yeah… what's it to you?"

Evan tore his glasses off. "Does he look anything like me?" he asked quickly.

It was then that Link understood why Evan had looked so familiar when they first met. He and Dietrich looked _exactly_ alike. The only difference was that Evan's hair was shorter and his face was younger. Other than that, they could've been twins.

"Hmph, no wonder I didn't like him." Haizea muttered.

"So I do look like him?" Evan asked.

Link just nodded blankly.

Them the furry eared young man jumped up and screamed, "Yes! I've found him! I've finally found him! Oh happy day!" Upon landing he fell on his face. Everyone stared at the book collector pitifully. He quickly scrambled up and put his glasses back on. "I know it's very forward of me to say this, but you must take me to where he is!"

"And why should we do that?" Haizea spat.

Evan cringed at the pale man's tone. He looked down at Link. "Remember when I told you I was looking for someone-my teacher?"

"Dietrich is your teacher?" Link asked skeptically.

Evan nodded happily. "Yes! You see, I was practicing a spell when I… accidentally sent him here…" he said quietly. "Oh I'm such a hopeless case…"

"What's he talking about?" Nabooru whispered to the boy.

"I'll tell you later…" he told her. So Evan was a magician too (Well, not anymore if he was from the same place as Dietrich). Link sighed. When his quest to save Zelda was over, he was going to make it a point to stop hanging around magical people. "I guess you can come…"

"Thank you!" Evan cried happily. "Oh, I hope Lord Dietrich can find it in his heart to forgive me…"

_Lord?_ Link thought. He remembered Dietrich saying something about hating formalities yet Evan addressed as lord?

"Bah, he's as much of a lord as I am a toad." Haizea spat.

The young book collector gave the pale man a harsh stare but said nothing.

"I really need to meet this guy now if he can make pale face react so badly." Nabooru said, smiling evilly.

* * *

Oh yay! Evan's back! Squee, I wanna hug him! X3 He's very huggable, you know. Nothing like Dietrich, his polar opposite! DX And in case some of you are wondering, yes Evan and Dietrich _are_ related. Evan just has hero-worship issues... and if you squint really hard maybe even a crush. That could just be my inner yaoicest fangirl speaking, because Evan does have a girlfriend and Dietrich is hideously homophobic (and afraid of sex in general but whatev).

So yeah... my favorite chapter is next! Because it's so special, I'm going to update later tomorrow!


	39. His True Name

Haizea says a baaad word in this chapter and my inner yaoicest fangirl had an influence in this chapter too... The scary part is... _everyone is still in character _D: ...

* * *

As they were at sea and Link watched Castle Town harbor drift slowly away, he couldn't help but get a bad a feeling. He'd said bye to his mother and grandfather, so he wasn't leaving with a guilty conscience like last time. No, this time he just a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach that he shouldn't have left the town. He let it go, however, thinking it was just nerves from leaving his mother behind. After all, he had just found her again and now he was leaving.

The trip wouldn't be too long, though. He knew that much. The island wasn't that far and they should get there even quicker than when Link had first gone because this ship was bigger and faster. He was just glad there was no more chaotic weather since they freed the last Siren, Raidne. And Nabooru was merciful this time. Link didn't have to do any chores on the ship! She said it was pointless since they'd be there within the next few hours.

He felt bad for Evan, though. The poor guy was halfway over the railing chucking up everything he had eaten recently. The rest of the pirate crew also picked on him constantly, especially the ones that had recognized him from the raid. Luckily, the suffering was not prolonged. As soon as they could the skiffs out to the island, they did.

On the skiff, the Sirens followed them around. Haizea translated that they were deeply grateful and when the time came, they would happily take them to the Fortress. After that, they disappeared into the water. The boy couldn't help but wonder if he would really ever see them again. He didn't know them personally, just their names really. It's not like he had a real conversation with one, but he knew that if he could he'd like to see them again.

As soon as the skiff hit land, Evan shot off towards the manor on the island with quickness that probably rivaled slave's.

"Wow, that kid can run…" Nabooru said, "But he looks so weird… like he's going to fall any second…"

"We should probably go too." Link said.

And the three exited the small boat they had came on, Haizea a bit hesitantly. The followed the trail to the rickety mansion. Evan had already run through the doors and inside the manor. The doors were left wide open so the group went inside only to hear screaming. Nabooru ran ahead and took a left at the nearest hallway where she came to a stop and just went, "Whoa!" as she smiled and blushed. Intrigued, Link ran up next to her and also came to a stop at the sight. When Haizea saw it he flinched.

Evan was actually on top of Dietrich hugging him as if his life depended on it, jabbering something in what sounded like gibberish. Loud gibberish, but gibberish nonetheless. Dietrich actually looked horrified. Evan probably wasn't expecting that punch in the face that threw him off the man. This time, the older looking one spat some very angry sounding loud gibberish at Evan, who just looked ashamed and then said some apologetic gibberish. Basically, the two were having a conversation in complete gibberish. Even Haizea didn't seem to understand what they were saying. The only things understandable were that Evan was sorry and that Dietrich was angry. When the older man was done yelling gibberish at the younger he turned and saw the group. A very deep flush came over his face.

"What do want?!" he snapped angrily.

"Um… we're looking for the Fairy Queen and we thought you might be able to help…" Link said, still figuring out what to make of the situation he had just seen before.

"Fairy Queen?" Dietrich asked. He thought for a moment, seeming to completely forget what just happened with Evan. After a moment or two he nodded and gestured for them to follow him. So they all followed. Evan even ran up to make sure he was the one directly behind Dietrich.

The man led them into the back of the mansion to a staircase. Unlike the one in the main hall, this one was in almost perfect condition. They went up the stairs and down a hallway that seemed even darker and creepier than the rest of the place. The walls were probably peeling even more too and Link couldn't say he was crazy about the color scheme. Dietrich stopped at the second door to the right and opened it. Everyone followed him in.

The room was unexpectedly large. In fact, it had more than one door in it. The other door across the room was probably an entrance from the broken staircase. They were lines and lines of bookcases, only a long table in the middle of the room interrupting the pattern. The furry eared man stopped at one bookcase and looked it over carefully. He finally pulled out a book and then took it to the table and gestured for everyone to take a seat.

He took a seat and then flipped open the book. It was written in an old script of Hylian. At school they used to drill Link through it but it wasn't his forte; he could only make out a few words.

"This book is all about the fairies of your world. I cannot say whether they are anything like the ones where I come from, but from what I am able to understand they are similar. I could just be reading it wrong, however. My grasp of your written language is… limited." he told them.

"Well, what could you make out?" Nabooru asked.

The man skipped a few pages until it came to a picture. The picture had four fairy women in it; two on each side-one in blue and another in red-, one in the middle, and another below covered in leaves. The one in the middle seemed the most important of the four since she wore a crown.

"This picture depicts the order of balance of the fairies here. They are divided into three main factions: Summer, Winter and Wild. Summer fairies specialize in fire and heat magic. Magic that brings warmth and well being to others. Winter fairies have power of ice and cold, often distant and cruel. Wild fairies are any fairy that has skills that lie in other places. They made of many different kinds and have the advantage of being resistant to iron but are still wary of it. All three factions have one thing in common: they answer to one ruler, their queen."

"And how is that important, old man?" Haizea asked bitterly.

Dietrich ignored the slave's tone. "The queen is the one that holds all three factions in balance. Without the queen there is a struggle for power. Whoever takes over will give their own side more authority than the others. Overall it means civil war between the Fae. If the queen really is missing, then Faerie is no doubt a very dangerous place to be at the moment but it the most likely place to find this missing queen."

"Faerie? That's a place?" Link asked, trying to understand everything.

Evan answered for Dietrich this time. "Faerie is where most fairies live. They don't usually live in this realm but in another realm that's parallel to this world. Whatever they do affects us here but we can't see or touch or them."

"However," Dietrich continued, "According to this book, this realm has a bridge between the realms. It appears only once every hundred years, unfortunately, it has not been one hundred years since the last time it opened."

"So how are we supposed to get there, then?" Nabooru asked a little angrily.

"Only one with much greater knowledge of fairies than I can answer that." Dietrich said.

Haizea scoffed. "And who would that be?"

The man smirked. "You."

Everyone froze and stared at Haizea, who was just as baffled as everyone else. "What do mean _me_?!"

"I've managed to figure what you are." He answered smugly as he leaned back on his chair. "I am sure you would like to know that too, no?"

There was such a look of hate on the slave's face, it was scary. Link could compare it with the time that Haizea had almost killed him. "Don't fuck with me, old man."

"Watch the language in front of the kid!" Nabooru snapped at him. Haizea glared at her and she recoiled. He returned his icy glare back to Dietrich.

"I am not taunting you, I am saying I can help you." the man said. "You probably have not noticed it since it has been slow and gradual, but your curse has been wearing off."

Nabooru and Evan definitely had no idea what was being talked about but said nothing. But Link understood. In fact, it made sense. His eyes had seemed different after they had freed Raidne, and then when Nabooru had mentioned dirt on his face… that "dirt" never left. He had changed but it was so slowly, that no one had bothered to notice.

"Explain." Haizea demanded.

Dietrich gave him a flat look. "So rude… but I suppose it is essential to help you…" he muttered. He turned to Evan and said something in his gibberish. There was a small conversation of gibberish to follow, and this made Haizea increasingly irritated. At the last spot of gibberish, Evan merely nodded and Dietrich nodded again. As if they had just come to an agreement or to an understanding.

"Haizea, I am going dispel the rest of your curse. Be grateful, because now neither I nor Evan can return to whence we came for this." Dietrich said it as calmly as he could but he was obviously upset.

The slave furrowed his brow and nodded. "Fine… but what exactly does this entail? You can't use magic."

"Oh that is simple enough." Dietrich said with a shrug. "Someone has to go into your head."

"Go into my head?" Haizea asked blankly. A flash of anger then appeared. "What do you mean 'go into my head'?!"

"Exactly what it sounds like… but not physically of course. No one could fit into your miniscule brain." The ex-warlock said. The comment incurred quite the smile from Nabooru.

More anger behind the slave's eyes. He looked like he was about to bite the man's head off but after taking a deep breath, the anger lessened somewhat. "Once again, that sounds very difficult without the use of magic."

"There is really no need for magic, at least not from the one going into your mind. _You _are the one who needs to open your mind, only then can you find your true name."

"Hmph, and judging from the way you're speaking, it doesn't look like you'll be the one going in."

"Good Lord, no." Dietrich said quickly. "I would rather die than that. Evan will be going."

"What?" Evan squeaked. His ears lowered so that he looked like a scared animal.

"He doesn't look reliable. He might break something." Haizea said.

"I think he's right, Lord Dietrich…" Evan said quietly.

"I can go." Link said.

"And why can't I go? Was I even put into consideration?" Nabooru asked accusingly.

The man sighed and looked at Link. "I refuse to let your mind be corrupted by the thoughts in Haizea's mind." To Nabooru. "You are a woman, you cannot touch him." To Evan and Haizea. "Whether either of you likes it or not does not matter. Evan you will be going into Haizea's mind and Haizea, you will open up your mind to him. Got it? Good."

Everyone frowned but Link supposed Dietrich had a point. After all, did he really want to figure out what made the slave tick? He felt sorry for Evan, though, who didn't seem to have a choice in the matter but he never objected.

Dietrich told them what had to be done. Overall, it seemed really similar to what Haizea had done with Raidne to drive Ganondorf out of her mind. The slave was still reluctant at the idea that anyone would be going into his mind. Evan just looked more nervous than usual. The thought of intruding in another's thoughts probably bothered him. No time was wasted, however. The two both sat on the floor and Evan put his palms on Haizea's temples. It went eerily quiet then.

"Evan will let us know when he has found Haizea's true name. I cannot say what will happen after that." Dietrich told them.

"Hey, long-legs," Nabooru said to the man. It took a moment or two for Dietrich to realize that he was being addressed. "What's with pale face? I mean, he can't touch girls and talks about curses… I don't really know anything about it."

Link drifted off after that. No doubt the man would tell the pirate Haizea's condition. Instead, he began to think if this was really a good idea. The feral look Haizea had those few times when he wasn't himself… Well, what if that really was the real Haizea? But if it was the only way to get through the Gate so he could rescue Zelda…

Zelda…

He had been avoiding thinking about her. He still wanted to save her but… Haizea had always taunted him on liking her in "that" way. He never thought about it until the slave constantly brought it up to annoy him. And when he even mentioned the word "love"… He was just a kid, he really shouldn't be thinking about these kinds of things but what if it was true. What if he really did _love_ Zelda? He felt the blood rush to his face at the thought of it. Did he? They were best friends, but did the fact that she was a girl and he was a boy really make that much of a difference? Did all best friends of the opposite sex feel this way about each other? Was he just in a really bad case of denial? His head began to hurt. He was thinking about this way too much… or rather, he didn't want to think about it.

_Just shut up brain… I'll really start to think about it _after_ I've saved her…_ he thought. But what if he couldn't save her? He didn't even dare think about that. He'd save her. He promised her he'd save her no matter what…

"I found it." he heard Evan say. Everyone looked at the Dietrich look-alike. He had a serious look about him and had released Haizea, who just sat there in a daze as if he was an empty shell.

Evan stood up and stepped back a little, he seemed nervous. He said some gibberish to Dietrich. The older man nodded and said, "Everyone… keep your distance."

Link shuddered and then looked at Haizea. His eyes were closed and he didn't look as blank as he had before. If anything he seemed… sinister. Well, more so than usual. He almost jumped when Haizea's eyes shot open. Link almost jumped again when he saw what was different. He eyes were red. And that "dirt" on his face… those were just black marks below his eyes.

The slightly different Haizea smiled as he stood up. Then he just started to laugh. "It really all makes sense now." He started, "Why I hated you at first sight, Link." The boy flinched. Haizea had _never_ said his name before. It was creepy. And what was that comment about hate?

"And my name…" the pale man continued. A nostalgic smile crept onto his face. "I never thought I'd hear it again… Vaati. It's much better than Haizea…" he spat.

Link flinched again. Vaati? That was his name? Where had he heard it before?

But before anything else could be said or done, a bright flash erupted in the room. Link shielded his eyes until the light faded. There were three more people in the room now. He recognized one of them as Farore.

* * *

I perhaps rushed into it, but I seriously couldn't think of how to make this longer. I've never been good with filler.

Alright, how many of you figured it out? Unlike my last story, in which I didn't really try to hide Vaati's identity, I tried here. I know **Evil Riggs** did, he's a very smart, analytical cookie... But he ruined my fun by posting his guess in a review! I was pretty sure that after that review everyone was like "OH YEAH!" Still, I was mildly surprised that everyone thought "Haizea" was an OC at first. I never, ever said he was one (I normally hate on OCs, despite how many there are in this fic), but no one could know the immense satisfaction I had over it. I mean, I had always hinted it (however vaguely) and if you were really, really observant, I practically gave it away in chapter 36.

And thus we have it, my favorite chapter. My second favorite chapter is next! But you have to wait for Thursday biatches.


	40. Return of the Sorcerer

Ah, I'm tired... It's another one of those late night updates... where it's the appointed day to update... but it's obscenely early in the morning (like 1 AM). I'll talk more at the end...

* * *

After the initial shock of seeing Farore there, Link noticed that the other two accompanying her were also women. Two women of rivaling beauty, one with red hair and another with blue. Link almost fainted when he realized who the other two women were. All three goddesses… Power, Wisdom, Courage… All of them there… in that room…

Nayru definitely had the appearance of a goddess of wisdom. The way she held herself in such a dignified, smart manner told him that much. She looked to be the oldest and had long, waving sky blue hair and less delicate features than her maternal looking sister, Farore. Her eyes were a deep sapphire blue and her skin just as white, if not whiter than Farore's. The gown she was wearing was detailed and it was definitely something that Link was sure he hadn't even seen the wealthiest lady in Hyrule wear.

Din was almost a complete opposite of her sisters. Still beautiful, but she did not have their fair skin or their delicate appearances. No, if anything she looked a lot like Nabooru but fiercer. She was tanned with fiery red hair, which was short and almost spiky. She was also the tallest of the three and had a muscular build about her, yet not so much that she looked masculine. Unlike her sisters, she wore no gown but an outfit much like Nabooru's. Her dark red eyes had a fierce gaze and they were focused right on Dietrich. She marched up to him in anger, almost level with the tall man.

"How dare you wizard?!" she hissed, her voice filled with the roughness of a fighter, "You go back on your oath to help _him_?" She glared at Haiz-Vaati. "You will _never_ return to your lands now! Never!"

Dietrich had no expression. "I realize full well what I have done and I have no regrets. The breaking of his curses will help the child save the princess if you let him." He said calmly.

Din was about to shriek something but Nayru held up her hand in a stopping motion. "Sister, we did not come to reprimand the wizard. He and his ward will be dealt with shortly." It was not a suggestion, it was a command. Din reluctantly backed down before shooting Evan an evil look. The skittish young man hid behind his master and cowered, squeaking something in his gibberish.

All three goddesses looked towards Vaati, who seemed just as delighted to see them as they were of him.

"Sorcerer Vaati," Nayru said, all professionalism, "You have been charged with treason, blasphemy, and adultery. Your punishment had been our three curses, but upon breaking it, your sentence has changed. You are to be executed."

The pale man was not bothered by it one bit. "Those are the most outrageous charges I've ever heard. Well, that last one at least. You all know it was consensual; it was the fault of those girls if they thought I was actually going to stay with them." He said perhaps a little too casually. The only ones who didn't seem bothered at all by that comment were the goddesses.

"This isn't a joke you disgusting creature!" Din snapped at him. "I should hang you upside down and-"

"Din." Nayru said sharply. "That is not the way we function." With a furious glare at her sister, the red goddess stood down.

"Of course that's not the way you function. You're just going to kill me rather than torture me. I imagine you've had enough of that for the past few centuries, anyways." Vaati sneered. Then he just extended his arms in welcome and smiled. "Well, you might as well get it over with. Kill me."

"Wait a second, you're just going to let them do that?!" Link cried out staring unbelievingly at the group of four in front of him. The goddesses all glanced at the boy while the pale man looked smugger than ever.

"Kid, what are you doing?!" Nabooru whispered to him frantically. "Not saying I approve of this but challenging the goddesses…"

"I don't care!" the boy said angrily. He shot dirty looks at the goddesses. "This… this isn't right!"

Nayru and Din didn't seem to be bothered by his statement but Farore looked mildly distressed. The green goddess walked over to him and knelt down to his level, putting her soft hand on his shoulder and looking at him almost pleadingly.

"Link…" he shuddered when she said his name, "From the moment the sorcerer's memory returned, he knew this would happen. He counted on you stepping into his defense to prevent us from killing him. And if you do stop us from carrying out this duty he will make it his mission in life, not only to ruin my sisters and me, but to kill you. Do you understand this?"

The boy bit his lip. He looked behind the goddess over to the man he was defending. He shrugged in a gesture of "she's right" but never losing his satisfied look. He didn't understand what he had done that would make him want to kill him. Before he'd been to this mansion, he had never met him before. While it was true they had never really gotten along, there were a few moments where they did. And the man had even saved his life once… twice if the incident with his mother counted any. Knowing that this man wanted him dead now, did he still want to help him?

"He's a jerk." Link said, "He's a huge jerk and I believe that he's done everything you said he did." The green goddess gave a sigh of relief. "But you can't kill him." The goddess looked at him in weary surprise. "I don't like knowing that he wants me dead… but he's my friend and… he did save my life."

All the goddesses seemed surprised at the comment. Din seemed to get infuriated again. "Idiotic child! You don't know what you're saying!" she shouted at him. "He's not your friend, he wants you dead! He wants to kill you by his own hand!" Link flinched, not only from the words she had said but the manner in which she had said them. Farore stood and stepped in front of him, shielding him from the sight of her sister.

"Sister," Farore had not addressed Din, but Nayru. "I will intercede on the sorcerer's behalf for the sake of this child."

The red goddess gave her sister an extremely ugly look and then looked to the blue goddess. Nayru looked to be deep in thought. After a moment she nodded.

"Farore, dear sister… you truly are the embodiment of Courage, to be willing to go this far for this boy… to go so far as to aid such an abomination…" the blue goddess turned to face Vaati, who looked quite satisfied. "Sorcerer, I do not approve of this… But you shall receive one last chance. Should you displease us again, we will not spare you our wrath."

Link hadn't even realized he was holding his breath. He wasn't the only one either. He caught Nabooru and Evan breathing out sighs of relief as well.

"You're fools! All of you!" Din snapped, before disappearing in a small flash of light.

Neither of the remaining goddesses said anything. Nayru just gave one last disapproving look at Vaati and then turned to Dietrich. "You and your ward will be dealt with later."

Dietrich bowed to her in respect and said, "I look forward to it." Evan clumsily imitated him. Nayru said nothing and then disappeared like her red sister had.

Farore knelt back down to face Link, a sorrowful look on her face. "I realize now the mistake I have made… I am sorry…" she said sadly. The most surprising thing was that she hugged him before standing up and following her sisters in a dim flash of light.

The silence that followed seemed to last forever.

"You know those pathetic excuses for goddesses were right. I would like to see you dead." Vaati finally said, breaking the silence. The smile on his face as he said it… he was even more demented than before.

Link looked up at him, not sure if he should make a face or not. He didn't know what to think anymore.

"You're a monster." Nabooru said, looking at him with disgust. "He just saved your life and…" she couldn't finish because she was that taken aback.

The pale man simply walked up to her and stared her down. Thinking it to be some sort of glare match, she stared him down as well. She was definitely not expecting a kiss. Everyone gaped; even Dietrich seemed a bit shocked. After the initial shock, Nabooru punched him off. Link was sure he had never ever heard a woman say so many bad words in one sentence. The sorcerer began to rearrange his jaw but the smile on his face was hard not to see.

"That was worth it…" he said when he was done testing to see if his jaw was still in the right place. "I haven't felt a woman's lips on mine for centuries…"

Nabooru screamed some more unpleasant things before hiding behind Dietrich and saying, "Be a man, long-legs! Kill him!"

The ex-wizard had a look that said "don't look at me I just work here."

Vaati rolled his eyes in annoyance. "Oh, relax! It was a double-edged sword; I can assure you as I much as I liked it I am equally disgusted." He said plainly to the pirate. "You're not even attractive."

The pirate gawked for a moment and then glared daggers at him. She turned to Dietrich. "Now you are obligated to kill him. Do it. Now."

The furry-eared man put a hand over his face and muttered something in his gibberish.

After things had calmed down a bit, they were all at the table again. The ancient sorcerer had made himself much more comfortable now that he was back to his "real" self. He was leaning back on his chair, legs up on the table, and looking like there was not a care in the world. It was like he had no idea how close to death he really was and if he did, he certainly wasn't concerned about it.

It was quiet again, no one said anything. Nabooru was just staring venomously at Vaati; Link was busy absorbed in his own thoughts and Dietrich just seemed distracted. Evan was the only one who seemed to have any cheer as he happily passed out tea to everyone, but it was obvious that the cheer was forced. It remained quiet well after the spazzy young man sat down.

"You know, I could probably kill you all right now and none of you could do a thing to stop me." Vaati said gleefully.

"If you really wanted to, you would have done so already." Dietrich said calmly as he took a sip of his tea. "Care to explain that?"

The pale man sat correctly in his chair then and shrugged. "Why not? I have a bone to pick with Ganon."

Link forked an eyebrow. "You do?" he asked.

"Yes, for a past transgression… It appears keeping you alive for a while longer will prove to be useful." he told the boy matter-of-factly.

"Then start jogging that brain of yours, perv because we need to find a Fairy Queen." Nabooru told him angrily. She still wasn't quite over the kiss and the insult that followed it.

Haizea probably would have shot her a dirty glare; Vaati, however, just gave her a cheerful smile and said, "Keep insulting me like that and you won't live much longer."

"Please figure something out?" Link asked unsurely.

The wind mage sighed. "Dietrich mentioned earlier something about Faerie. He was right when he mentioned that was the most likely place to the Queen. She rarely ever leaves Faerie. Unfortunately, the door to the realm is closed, like he mentioned. I can open it again, but it'll be difficult since it's out of season and not everyone can go." he explained.

Nabooru glared questioningly. "What do you mean?"

The mage looked irritated at her question. "Faerie only allows children and other fairies to pass through. Only Link and I can go through." He said.

"Oh, so you've finally admitted how immature you are!" the pirate said happily.

He glared at her. "I really will have no problems destroying you when the time comes for it…" he spat.

"The reason he can pass through," Dietrich interrupted so that no one would kill anyone, "Is because he not completely human."

"Not completely human?" Link asked.

"I was originally of a race of Wild fairies called Minish." Vaati began as if it was something he'd rather not remember. "I stole a hat from my teacher that granted wishes and it gave me the appearance of a Hylian, though, it didn't completely change me into one." He shot a dirty look at Link. "Believe it or not, you played a part in that tale…"

The boy shuddered. He didn't really understand what the mage meant. He just knew being hated didn't feel nice-especially from someone he thought was his friend until about half an hour prior. It was actually kind of depressing…

"I might as well get started on preparing everything..." Vaati said as he stood from his chair and walked out of the library.

Everyone else stayed at the table and was quiet.

"Is it possible…" Nabooru started, "That he became an even bigger jackass than before?"

Link just shrugged. He was really confused.

Dietrich just muttered something in gibberish. It didn't sound pleasant and judging from Evan's shocked impression, it probably wasn't.

Link grimaced… Vaati… perhaps it wasn't a good idea to have brought him back…

* * *

Alright, I've always imagined Picori/Minish to be a sort of fairy. So I applied it here. I've also always been of the opinion that Vaati is a huge and immense pervert. Seriously, he kidnaps so many girls... When we're little and we hear about the bad guys kidnapping the fair maidens, we don't think about it because it's just a story. But when we grow up and think back on those stories... There's a reason bad guys kidnap pretty girls and more often than not, the intentions aren't always honorable. If they were, they probably wouldn't be bad guys. However, I also believe that he has a special way to convince girls to... uh... Yeah, I'm sure you all get the point...

Also, I know that sometimes it may seem like I hint a VaatiNabooru relationship... No, it's not happening. I just want to say that right now so everyone's clear. Those two hate each other's guts. It's staying that way.

Well, I'm going to sleep now! See ya Sunday...


	41. To Find a Queen

This is a very short chapter and for that I apologize. I just haven't been in the mood to write. The shortness also probably has a bit to do with the fact that I wanted to end it at the particular place I ended at. I might give you guys an early chapter just because I feel bad for the shortness tomorrow. No school so I have the time for it. I love Labor Day.

Oh yes, and for the past two chapters I've failed to mention: I drew a picture of this story's version of Vaati. If you would like to see it, go to my deviant art page (which is accessible by clicking the link on my profile).

* * *

After a few seconds, the rest of the group went down to see what the sorcerer was up to. As soon as he caught sight of them he began to make demands; get him some chalk, move that there, get out of the way-that kind of stuff. Nobody really said anything, they just followed the orders. Somehow, the idea of getting a man with newly regenerated magical powers pissed off didn't sound appealing.

Link honestly had no idea what Vaati was trying to do, however. He just kept ordering things to be taken away and yelling at everyone asking where his chalk was. Evan eventually managed to find some and rushed immediately to give it to the sorcerer. The pale man yanked it away and immediately began drawing something on the floor. No one asked any questions. Link just wondered how come an adult could draw on the floor but he couldn't. It was discrimination!

At least that's what he thought until he actually saw what was being drawn. It was a really big circle at first, and then Vaati began to add shapes and symbols that he didn't recognize but could tell were really, really old. More kept being added into the circle and the boy could've sworn he'd seen something like this before. It came to him that he had seen something like it before. At the castle during certain festivals, the court magicians would often make big circles with designs like these. He didn't really know what they did, if anything those were for decoration but this… this was real.

"Dietrich!" Vaati snapped. "No one breaks this circle. No one gets near it."

Dietrich just nodded.

"Link, get in the circle. Now." Vaati ordered. He jumped a bit and then scrambled into the circle. As soon as he was in the sorcerer said, "Don't move."

"Um… why?" the boy asked curiously.

The wind mage shot a glare at him. "Because if you don't, you may die. I may remember all my spells now but I haven't actually applied any of them in centuries." He spat.

Link tried not to panic. He was pretty sure his face was showing it, though. There was a possibility he was going to die from this… Then again, there was the possibility he was going to die from everything he did on this mission to save Zelda but…

The sorcerer began to mutter words that he couldn't understand. He tried not to jump as he saw the circle they were in was starting to glow. Wind began to whirl up inside of the circle. Link bit his lip and held onto his hat so it wouldn't float away. He saw Nabooru gaping at the sight, giving off the impression that what was going on looked even stranger when you weren't inside the circle. Dietrich and Evan looked on as if it was something normal, though; the younger one was even waving cheerfully.

That didn't cheer him up. In fact, everything started to get blurry…

It took him a moment to realize that it wasn't nerves. Everything within the circle stayed normal, everything outside of it was blurring, almost melting… Was this the spell? He looked up at the man standing by him. Vaati was completely immersed in the spell, just chanting away whatever it was he was saying. Did he even notice that everything outside of the circle was blurring and warping, turning into blobs of color? That everything was becoming unrecognizable? He looked around again to see that the blurring was now turning back into solids. Everything was returning to normal as the circle's glowing and the mage's chants died down.

Vaati took a deep breath as he finished the spell. He looked around and nodded. "It was a success. And here I was half-hoping you'd die…" he told Link.

The scowled at him and then looked around. "Everything looks the same…" he said, unconvinced that it really was a success until Nabooru said,

"Where'd they go? They just disappeared!"

"Well, they were being taken to Faerie…" Evan said.

There was a bit more conversation after that but the boy tuned it out. "They can't see us?" he asked.

"The spazzy child said it before," Vaati referred to Evan, "Faerie is a realm parallel to the one we live in. The geography and location of everything is the same but they can't see or touch us. We, however, can see and touch them."

Link had a puzzled look on his face. "Why?"

The pale man shrugged. "It's just how it's always been and always will be." And then he began to walk out of the mansion.

"Um, how do we know where the Fairy Queen is?" the boy asked when he caught up.

"I already know where she is." Vaati said.

Link waited a moment before asking, "Where is she?"

"The mainland." He answered as if it was a stupid question to ask.

Link frowned as they exited the mansion. "Um, how are we going to get there?" he asked as he looked out and saw miles of ocean. They couldn't take the boat, he knew that much.

"Tch, who do you think I am?" the man asked, almost insulted. "I'm Vaati, Sorcerer of _Winds_."

The boy did not like the sound of that. He really did _not_ like the sound of that and he knew the pale man could tell from the smirk on his face.

"I'd say hold on tight, but there's nothing to hold on to." he taunted as he flicked his wrists into the air.

Before Link could even grasp what the mage meant, the wind picked up around them and they were sucked into a cyclone. Whether he was flying around wildly within it or not he just shut his eyes and screamed as the wind whipped about him. And he screamed, and screamed, and screamed, and screamed some more. Even when the winds stopped and he could feel solid ground beneath his boots, he kept screaming. He stopped when something struck him on the head.

"Shut up!" Vaati shouted angrily. "We're on the ground, shut up! Do you know how annoying the sound of your voice is?!"

He finally opened his eyes reluctantly and found he was firmly crouched on the floor. So firmly crouched, in fact, that he found himself unable to move. The mage next to him looked very upset… and tired. He hadn't applied some of his advanced magic in centuries, he said. A cyclone like that must have tired him out. Possibly sensing the boy's thoughts, the disgruntled sorcerer turned his gaze to what lay in front of them. Forcing himself to move a bit, he also took a gander at where they had arrived.

He felt himself shudder and heard himself whimper at what he saw.

It was a cave, a very large cave that only became bigger the further you went inside. Dark and damp, filled with unpleasant things… He knew this without even having to look at the sign with the Hylian Royal Crest on it hanging from the lip of the cave's mouth. He had been here once before and it didn't bring back any pleasant memories.

"The Fairy Queen… lives here…?" he asked, his voice coming out squeaky.

The mage had a look of disdain on his face. "She does have a lack of taste but then again, so do all fairies. Why do you think I hate them all? If it were up to me, I'd be rid of them altogether but they do have their uses…" the pale man said, walking ahead into the cave.

Link just looked into the blackness of the cave. He didn't want to go in there. He hated that place… he was _terrified_ of it, actually. If there's one thing he could say he truly feared, it was that cave and the many things that lay inside of it. The many unpleasant things… creatures _and_ memories.

Why did the Fairy Queen have to live _here_? What on the face of the green earth could possibly make anyone even want to live in a place like that!

He reluctantly stepped forward to follow the mage inside of the Hylian Catacombs.


	42. ReDead

Here ya'll go. The early chapter I promised. Now I'mma gonna go say some more stuff at the end.

* * *

He wasn't sure if it was his overactive imagination or the horrible memories that were resurfacing, but he immediately felt a chill as he entered. It wasn't as dark as he thought it was-that was definitely a part of the overactive imagination. There were always torches lit in the catacombs; there were people whose jobs were to come in every two to three hours to replace them. Judging from the state of the torches, they had been changed not too long ago. Still, no matter how many torches one put in the place, it would be dark.

As they ventured farther inside, the cave began to widen and statues began appear on the sides of now wider hall. Ancient statues staring at the two with dead eyes. The wide hall then opened up into a great large room with stone caskets rising from the ground. He didn't want to be there… in the maze of caskets… but his companion went on and he grudgingly followed.

"_Don't wander now Link. Stay with the procession. It kin get dangerous in the older parts; don't want ye to get in any trouble."_ His grandfather's words, all those years ago…

They were in the sea of stone boxes now. Each holding its own occupant for the rest of eternity… never to see the light of day again…

His mother's crying, the solemn faces… _"He was a good man, a true hero. Be proud to know he was your father."_ Who told him that? He didn't remember. He didn't really care. He didn't want to be here… he didn't want to remember this…

He ran away… he remembered running away. He couldn't accept it. He was crying… he remembered his face was all wet. Dad wasn't dead… he couldn't be dead… that's what he thought. He could find him. He was just hiding somewhere and he'd jump out and surprise everyone. Mom would be happy again and Grandpa would stop being quiet. He couldn't find him so he sat curled up and started crying. He couldn't find him and he couldn't find his mother or anyone else… He was alone. And all these caskets were old and cracked… it was so dark… He was scared.

There was a scream. A horrible, unnatural scream that made every bone in his body shake and every hair stand on end. He couldn't move but his peripheral vision was telling him there was something beside him, getting nearer and nearer. He could hear the feet dragging against the dirt floor, something coming closer. The scream stopped and he managed to turn his head. A brown, rotting face stared at him. It had no eyes but it was staring at him. It was terribly thin, its skin stretching over bone. Its lower half was gone and he realized he wasn't hearing feet drag on the floor, but a spinal cord and broken rib cage. A gaping mouth with rotten breath continued to open wider and wider. It moaned, sending stinking breath into his face. It neared him and he remembered he couldn't scream. He just pushed himself back as the thing kept crawling towards him, its dead, bony fingers reaching out to grab him. He was pumping more tears onto his face. He was backed up against a casket, he couldn't go anywhere else. It just kept dragging itself closer and closer to him…

Dad… where are you, Dad? he thought, Please, Dad, where are you?

Dad wasn't coming, Dad was dead… He was in one of those stone coffins right now… He wasn't coming… This thing was going to eat him now and everyone would find out too late… He didn't want to die!

Another shriek came from the monster. He ended up screaming too.

The monster's shriek suddenly ended. He opened his eyes and saw his grandfather with his sword, stabbing the creature over and over. His mother ran to him and hugged him tightly, telling him everything would be alright. He could feel her frightened tears through her dark veil…

He never wanted to go back…

And he was back.

He snapped out of the horrible memory. He paused for a moment and looked around. Vaati wasn't there.

He was alone again.

At first, he didn't feel anything. Vaati was a jerk, even as Haizea he was a jerk. That wasn't going to change. He thought they were friends but they weren't… good riddance to him, then…

But he still panicked. Because right now, he didn't care who it was he just didn't want to be alone. Not in this place. Not here, no not alone…

The caskets were old and cracked… just like last time… and no one was around. He should be yelling or something. Maybe would Vaati would hear him, then… But he wanted him dead…

He fought back tears. He didn't want to be alone… he hated this place.

He couldn't think clearly. He didn't realize he was crying now. He didn't realize that he had curled up into a ball. All he could hear were unnatural screams…

ReDead. Vaati hadn't heard the shrieks of ReDead in a long time. Even long before the goddesses had cursed him he hadn't heard their shrill cries. He hated them. He hated a lot of things, but ReDead were in his top ten. The last place he expected them to be in was the Hylian Catacombs, though. But where there were dead bodies, those vile creatures were bound to pop up.

"Watch out for ReDead." he said to Link.

He realized then, that he hadn't heard the boy's footsteps in a while. He turned on his heel. He cursed when he saw that the boy wasn't there. Not that he cared or anything… It was in his best interests that the little idiot stay alive for the moment.

More zombie creatures screeched. They weren't around his area but they weren't too far. And in one general area… he cursed. They were going after Link! He wished he could pinpoint the area they were at. Worst of all, in places like this he was grounded. It was times like this where he wished that he had paid a bit more attention when Ezlo spoke about tracking. He hated that old man too but he'd be lying if he said that fool wasn't wise in _some_ areas.

He just had to follow the sound… carefully. Just because he could stand to hear a Siren didn't mean that he could stand to hear the shrieks of those banshees at close range.

A shriek that didn't come from too far caused him to flinch and-though he hated the thought of it-he followed it. More unearthly screams began to litter the air. He could feel his ears twitch in irritation but he ignored them. He managed to see the backsides of two ReDead. He climbed up onto a stone casket to avoid them and get a better view of the situation. There quite a few ReDead there, aside from the two he saw, all closing in on their prey. The prey was Link, balled up and crying his eyes out.

_That is what beats me over and over again?_ He thought to himself angrily. He huffed but figured he had to help him. He immediately recoiled when one of the zombies shrieked. He couldn't move…

He cursed in his mind. The creature stopped its shriek and it and its little friends were getting ever closer to the panicked boy. There was no way he could take those creatures on all at once… not without risking the boy's life. He questioned why he cared but brushed it to the back of his mind. He knew what to do.

Six, there were six ReDead there. He frowned. That would've been small fry before he was cursed… but his skill had deteriorated since then. ReDead were hard to kill, especially since they were never really alive to begin with. But he had no time to waste. He concentrated for a moment and three black balls spawned in midair. Little bat wings unfurled and each had a red eye on them. They squeaked in glee at the sight of him and flapped around him.

"Never mind that now," he hissed at them, "Surround the boy, put a barrier around him."

The winged orbs glanced down at Link and gave a questioning look to their master, but a glare from him quickly made them speed down and form a staticky barrier around the huddled child. The ReDead were futilely clawing against the barrier. Now that the kid was protected, he could be sloppy.

He took a deep breath and let it out. If any of the creatures had screeched, he didn't hear. He was too busy concentrating on what he was about to do. He shook his wrists and then sliced the air horizontally. Blades of wind were slicing all the ReDead to bits. He looked on, a bit disappointed. His skill really had gone down. While it was true the zombie-like things were being cut to smithereens, chunks of them were still left and moving. He should've been able to make sure the biggest scarp of one was microscopic… He cursed the goddesses in his mind.

"Take care of what's left." he ordered his little bat-winged servants.

The flying orbs bobbed up and down happily and released the barrier on Link as they sped off to what was left of the ReDead. He didn't pay attention to what they were doing; he just stepped off of the stone casket and knelt down by Link, shaking him a bit.

"Snap out of it, fool." It didn't come out quite as harshly as he wanted it to. In fact, as he looked at the shivering boy…

Link had one last wild shudder and then looked up the mage. The boy then just grabbed him and hugged him and started bawling.

What the hell was this?!

He tried to pry the child off of him but it just wasn't working. It was like he was glued onto him! He had a mind to blast the child off, but it would most likely cause him harm as well. Frustrated, he gave up and decided to let the child cry until it was out of his system.

Child…

That's right… Link was still a child. The balance of the world, the fate of Hyrule was always in a child's hands. Why was it always a child? Why put such a great burden on a child? Why did he care?! He always lost to a child! How pathetic was that?!

"Get off." He muttered as he tried to pry the boy off, this time with success.

The boy came away, all red in the face and sniffing. After a moment or two, Link regained his composure and managed to ask, "Why'd you help me?"

Vaati stood and brushed himself off, hoping none of Link's snot got on him. "I told you before, you still have use." he said, "Don't drift off again, we're nearly there. Get up."

Link got up slowly but followed the mage as he walked ahead. He still couldn't believe it… Vaati, who everyone said wanted to kill him, just saved him… _again_. But then again, the mage had just told him it was because he still had use… The point was, he saved him. That cheered Link up a little.

There was a moan somewhere far off. He jumped and scrambled a little closer to Vaati. The pale man shot him a glare but said nothing.

Some flapping sounds, however, kept Link jumpy. He finally turned back for a moment to see what it was and then yelped. Black, eyeball flying things! And they were glaring at him…

"Don't harm him, his time will come." Vaati told them. The things fluttered over to the mage and started circling him happily.

"What are those?!" Link asked in a panic.

"Oh these? A few little pets I invented way back when. Cute aren't they?" Vaati said, smiling at the things as they fluttered around him. "Alright, it's time to go. I'll call you if I need you again." He told the creatures. They swayed in the air sadly but then disappeared in puffs of dark smoke. He glanced at Link. "Come on, time's of the essence, isn't it?"

Link reluctantly began to follow the sorcerer again. As soon as he saw the flying eye things, he had a notion of why Vaati hated him. Just a notion but he couldn't be sure…

_"You are the reincarnation of heroes past… When a great evil arises in Hyrule, a hero is born to defeat the evil."_ The Deku Tree had said that…

He took a fleeting glimpse up at the mage in front of him for a moment. Great evil… it wasn't just Ganondorf then…

* * *

ReDead scared the living crap out of me when I was a lil' kid. That's why I never played Ocarina of Time for the longest time, because of the ReDead and that thing down in the well with the hands. I hated'em. Yup, hated'em all.

Anywho, a little bit of background because I don't think I'll explain it during the actual story... Link's daddio was a local hero and a friend of the king's, thus why he got the honor of being burined in the catacombs. Also, I am of the belief, where there are graves, there are ReDead... especially the farther back you go, because that's where the older stuff is (in this case). Also, ReDead can and will eat every living thing they come in contact with, even residents of thefairy realm. Being concentrated, evil magic, ReDead can see beings in Faerie and touch them just as well.


	43. Residents of a Coffin

I actually really, really, really didn't want to update. Anyways, introduction of a few new peeps in this chapter. I wanted to kick myself because they're all OCs. Have I ever told you guys how much I am opposed to OCs in fanfiction? But this story is just seems to demand them since it's an original storyline... Dammit.

I'm sorry guys... today I seem to be high on the air or something because I have this craving just to say lol every five seconds. Lol... DAMMIT!

And you know what **fleets**, I never would have guessed. Never. -lolscarcasm- XD I actually kind of feel like I'm yankin' your idea now, though. It makes me feel bad. D:

* * *

They trekked farther back into the catacombs, avoiding ReDead when they heard them near. Sometimes, Link thought he even saw floating lanterns, but it's not like he'd get closer to find out. He just kept following Vaati, despite his renewed wariness of this person he called friend once.

They had reached the very back of the catacombs, greeted by the sight of a giant stone slab. Looking up at the slab, the only thing he recognized was the crest of the Royal Family. There was writing, but it was in the really old Hylian text that he couldn't read.

"What is this?" Link asked.

"The door to the Fairy Queen." Vaati said. "Now shut up and let me read…"

The boy grumbled something but left the mage alone. After a moment or two, the pale man muttered something he couldn't catch. As soon as the last syllable was said, there was a rumbling sound from within the walls. Then he saw that the slab was shaking and rumbling. Even more surprising was that it was moving to the side, opening up to a different room. When the slab stopped moving, Link got a good look at the room.

It wasn't too big and for being in such a creepy place, it was pretty. There was a bright pool of water at the end of the room, surrounded by simple plant life. A couple of large flowers on the ceiling seemed to be giving off a sort of sparkling light. It reminded Link of when he first entered the Lost Woods, when he just felt so peaceful.

"This isn't good." He heard Vaati say.

Link looked at the mage and saw he seemed a bit disturbed. "What isn't good?" he asked.

"She's not here." Said the sorcerer.

Link looked back at the pretty room. He was right. No one was there. At first he thought maybe the Queen could have been hiding somewhere or doing that fairy thing and appearing only when she wanted to. But he remembered that she couldn't pull that off now since they were in Faerie. And if Vaati couldn't detect her…

Link noticed the wind mage walk over to the nearest casket and then tap it.

"What are you doing?!" the boy asked in a panic.

"Be quiet!" the pale man barked.

He bit his lip, unsure of what was going on. He almost fainted when he saw a lantern materialize in the air and then a strange ragged form appeared carrying it.

"What is it?! Who's waking me up-" the strange form cut its sentence short when it saw the pale man staring angrily at it. "Oh… oh, oh! OH! Master Vaati! Oh my, I'm terribly sorry… How… I thought the goddesses-"

"If you know what's good for you, Poe, you'll stop right there." Vaati said harshly.

The ghostly creature recoiled. "Yes, yes, of course Master Vaati…"

"Uh…" Link started shakily. "W-what's that…?"

"Ah, Master Vaati, what is _he_ doing here?" the creature said.

The wind mage ignored the creature. "This piece of scum is Poe. Centuries ago he worked under me as a spy but he was enough of an idiot to get himself killed. Luckily he managed to take the one who killed him with him so he received a hero's burial because no one knew what happened. He still serves me in death."

"I do not deserve such praise from you, Master…" the ghost said sadly. Link forked an eyebrow. _That_ was praise?

"You're right, you don't." the mage hissed. "Now tell me, because I _know_ there's one in here, where's the nearest Entrance?"

The boy was about to ask another question but the ghost immediately said, "Entrance? But master…"

"I know what I'm asking!" Vaati's tone was almost at a yell.

Once again, Poe recoiled. "O-of c-course you do Master! Um, the nearest Entrance… erm, please follow me!" and then it rushed off.

Rushing for Poe, however, wasn't as fast as one would've thought. The duo easily caught up to the ghost, who led them along the wall until they reached a flat stone.

"Here it is Master!" the ghost said happily.

The pale man bent down to examine the rock and then stood up straight, giving a nod of approval. "Good, Poe. You may leave; I only have one last order."

The ghost bobbed its hooded head. "Yes, yes, Master, you don't even have to say it!" and then its form dissipated.

Link just stared at the rock the ghost had led them to. It was a rock. "How's this an entrance to anything?" he asked, kicking the stone lightly.

"Entrance, capital E. Not 'entrance'." Vaati said.

"It's a rock." the boy said flatly.

"Your powers of perception haven't dulled, I see." the wind mage said, mimicking the boy's tone. "What's different about this rock?"

He looked back down at the rock. "It has a star-shaped crack on it… but tons of rocks have cracks on them." he said.

"But the star shape is what makes it an Entrance." the mage said as if he had had to repeat fifteen times. He stepped on the stone then. "Get up here."

The boy just sighed miserably. Why couldn't they just get out of here? He jumped onto the stone next to the pale man.

"Don't move."

"You're not going to…" Link didn't finish the question. Just the mere memory of the cyclone from before…

Vaati understood the question, unfinished or not. "No, you'll still be on your feet. Stop whining." Then he began to chant syllables that Link couldn't understand… again.

He sighed. Sometimes he wished he could understand some of this magic stuff. And sometimes he just really wished he knew what some of the spells entailed because everything was getting bigger. Just like when they were being taken to Faerie, the mage didn't seem to notice or care. Link wanted to panic. He was a kid; everything was already big to him. Everything getting even bigger… He didn't like it!

It was then that he realized that everything was not getting bigger… they were getting smaller! Vaati's chanting had stopped and Link just looked around frantically. They were still on the stone… but so small! He took a step back but fell into one of the cracks on the stone.

He landed uncomfortably on his bottom and looked around. There was a mouse hole like exit from the stone a little bit a ways. He grumbled as he saw that Vaati was just relaxingly floating on down behind him.

"It's times like these where I can really appreciate that the laws of gravity don't apply to me most of the time." the mage said smugly as he gently landed.

Link grumbled something unpleasant and stood up. "Why'd you shrink us?"

No longer did the pale man seem smug and satisfied. His expression changed to one of annoyance. "Because we need information that, unfortunately, can only be obtained while this size." Even his voice said he was annoyed.

There was a scraping noise. Link turned on his heel towards the sound and saw nothing.

"It looks like our welcoming party is already here…" the mage grumbled.

Before the boy could say "huh," a spearhead was poking him in the neck. More spearheads came and surrounded them. Vaati had already put up his hands in surrender, Link did so as well. He took his gaze a little off the point of the spear to its holder. It had on a skull-like mask and strange clothes. The creature pointing the spear at him poked him and then jabbered something he couldn't understand.

He felt a sharp poke in his back. He'd seen this sort of thing before… but with criminals. They were prodding them so they would move… He thought about reaching for his sword but he managed to catch a glare from the mage next to him.

He was prodded again and he moved forward. He didn't like it-and not just because the pokes hurt. He just didn't like the idea of being forced to go somewhere, especially when spears were involved. He couldn't help but notice that Vaati was getting much harsher treatment. They prodded him harder with the butts of their spears and seemed to be jabbering angrily at him. Whether the mage understood what they were saying or not he didn't know, he just knew he was just as angry as these masked creatures were.

They were forced out through the mouse hole in the rock. The boy was shocked to see the place where they had just been minutes before. It was almost scary how much bigger everything was when they were that small. Even the grains of dirt seemed humongous…

The squad of masked people was heading for a large crack in one of the stone caskets. Well, it obviously wasn't really that large if Link hadn't noticed it before he shrunk, but now it seemed huge. Then he became disturbed when he remembered that it was a crack in a _coffin_. Coffins usually had dead people in them. He didn't like dead people. He had very bad experiences with dead people… fake dead people, but they looked real enough to him. So going into a casket with a _real_ dead person in it… he hoped with every fiber of being and hat that they were not walking towards that casket.

They were prodded into the crack in the casket. Link expected to smell the stink of a decomposed corpse on the walls and a half beaten skeleton to be inside. To his surprise, there wasn't anything like that in the casket. There was actually a makeshift town, fully functioning with inhabitants going to and fro. The inhabitants must've brought everything they needed for the town from the outside. It was then that he noticed what these creatures looked like without the skull-masks on. Once again, he was surprised. They looked a lot like Hylians except for bigger eyes and longer, pointier noses.

The strange people then pushed Link out of the little prisoner squad they had. An unmasked person came and stood next to him, tugging at his sleeve slightly in a gesture probably saying "follow me" and then started walking, pulling the boy along with him. He was confused but didn't really do anything to stop. He did turn back a little just to see what was going on with the wind mage. The prisoner squad still had him surrounded and was beginning to lead him off in the other direction.

"Put it in a good word for me, will you?" Vaati said before Link got too far away.

The boy didn't understand but the person that had his sleeve tugged again, forcing him to follow. What was going on? Who were these little people that lived in an empty coffin? And why was he set free and Vaati being taken to who knows where? He wished there could be some form of communication so he could ask…

"You human?" It was the one who was dragging him around. She (at least he thought it was a she) seemed to have a little trouble saying it.

"Um, yeah." he answered. "Do you speak Hylian?"

She shook her head, the little skull-like ornament on her hat bobbed when she did so. "Know little. Elder know more." Then she let of him and Link assumed that he was to continue to follow her. And he did, but she occasionally gave him another tug if he was distracted by something. He wasn't sure how, but somehow plants managed to grow in the coffin despite the lack of sunlight. And the buildings were of… interesting construction. Some were made of shoes (where they got them he wasn't sure he wanted to know), some were constructed there with foraged materials, and he even caught one that looked like a mushroom.

He couldn't really tell how long it was before she brought him to a boot, entering through its makeshift door and gesturing for him to follow. The boot was old and gaudy-probably expensive when it was in fashion-so he assumed it was where this Elder lived. He followed her through the door and was immediately assaulted by the smell of old people. It sounded rude, yes, but that was the best way he could think to describe it. He wanted to hold his nose really badly but refrained from it. For some reason, older folks tended to be a bit insulted when he held in nose in front of them.

Anyways, the boot was pretty straightforward. It looked kind of like a personal office. He wondered if this was where the Elder lived. When he looked up he saw a winding staircase around the boot, stopping to form a full platform every now and then. It was interesting how these people made their living being so small…

Link looked around a bit more and then put his attention back on the girl that had brought him there. She was talking in her language to a very, very old looking man. He was more dressed up than any of the people he had seen thus far. His mustache was ridiculously long but he had no beard, and his hat split into two different tails and trailed all around the floor. He was holding what Link thought might be a bone cane. As with the shoes, he didn't want to know where the bone came from. After a bit of jabbering from the girl that brought him there, the old one nodded and looked at him. He scuttled over to Link-bringing a new meaning to personal space-and looked him over, sometimes tapping him with his bone cane.

"Yup, you're definitely a human boy!" the old man said with a smile. Link felt a little queasy-he was missing some teeth and the ones he did have weren't very pretty. If his teeth were ever like that when he got old, he'd ask someone to punch him in the face… But unlike the girl, he seemed to be able to speak Hylian without the slightest hint of an accent. "I'm Mateu, elder of this village. What's your name?"

"Erm, I'm Link…" he said.

"Link?" the old man seemed lost in thought for a moment. He muttered his name a few more times and then had a look of revelation on his face. "Ah, yes, I know you! What are you doing here? And with Vaati? I thought that boy was dead…"

Right to the point, Link thought grimly. He wasn't entirely sure how he was going to explain it. He also wasn't sure how Vaati was a boy… the guy was centuries old. He didn't even want to think about how old this man was…

"Uh, would you believe me if I told you he was helping me?" he said to the old man.

"Not really." The old one said truthfully.

"Would you believe me if I told you he wants to kill me directly after he'd done helping me?" Link added.

"Oh, okay then. That's more like him." the old man said with a nod. "I remember, always a bad egg that one… Seemed innocent enough at first but then he up and betrayed Ezlo like that-started causing trouble for _everyone_. Ezlo never really got over it, poor man… Thought of that boy like a son."

That made sense. Sure, he didn't know the details but Vaati causing trouble for everyone… heck, he was doing that now! But… how did this old guy know-

"I see it on your face; you want to know how I know all this." the old man sighed. "I've been around for a very long time. By the time Vaati was scurrying around up with the humans I was already middle-aged."

If he tried not to seem flabbergasted, he was sure it didn't work. While he didn't know the timeline behind this… that was a long time ago…

"Yeah, I know I'm old." Mateu said bitterly.

"That's not really what I was thinking," Link said, though it wasn't entirely true. He was thinking that but another question was in his head… A human couldn't live so long so… "I was thinking-what are you guys?"

The old man seemed a bit surprised but he laughed about it a second later. "I forget how much we've been forgotten by the humans. We're just fairytales to them now…" he said sadly. Then he perked up a bit. "I, along with everyone else in the village, am a Minish. You know us better as Picori."

* * *

I like Poe. Hey, every villain needs a man on the inside-Vaati's no exception. So I made the ghostly dude. I actually like the relationship he and Vaati have. It's hilarious. Poe practically worships the ground he walks on and Vaati just seems to hate his guts for no particular reason. In actuality, I just wanted to throw a ghost in the mix. LAWL. (God help me, I need to stop saying that!)

The Picori here are actually a completely different faction of the Minish types from Minish Cap. I call them Graveyard Minish (even though they live in catacombs). I'll have some doodles of them posted up on my devart page soon, if any of you are interested.


	44. Halves

Another update I really, really did not want to do. Oh well, I'm going back to my House marathon now.

* * *

"Picori? But don't Picori help people?" Link asked.

"Us help!" the girl Picori piped up. "Us help lots!" She seemed almost offended. Mateu told her something in Minish and she calmed down.

"Our faction of Minish," the old one began to explain to the boy, "Helps the dead. It's true, they're not alive but they still deserve respect. We do what we can for them, cleaning the graves we can make it to, growing flowers for fresh graves, keeping it from being so smelly, that sort of thing."

He supposed he could understand. He was always taught to never speak badly of the deceased. But he had to remember why he was there. That was more important.

"Uh, okay… we came looking for the Fairy Queen." Link said, hoping he wasn't being too straightforward.

The old Minish seemed to be lost in thought for a moment. "The Fairy Queen isn't in her chamber?" he asked. Link shook his head. "I see… Do you have any idea why?"

Link shook his head and then paused for a moment. "Vaati might. It was his idea to come here so he might have some sort of idea." he said, feeling a little weird about it. He'd thought of Haizea of as a friend… Vaati… was different. He wasn't exactly sure he liked standing up for a wind mage that he was sure he'd had an antagonistic relationship with in a past life or two.

The girl Minish began to jabber something away angrily at him. Link found himself stepping back from the threatening sound of her tone. The old Minish began calmed her down again and then turned back to the boy, a grave look on his face.

"I'm sure you know the consequences for this…" the old one said.

Link nodded grimly. "Farore already told me."

Mateu bit his lip. "Very well then."

He went on and led the way out of his boot and the boy followed. The girl Minish did stayed behind. They wound through the town, each Minish giving a nod of reverence to the Elder passing by. They went through a tunnel of construction Link wasn't too comfortable with-it seemed like it would fall any second. After the tunnel, the old one took a winding trail until they reached a building of a sort that looked underused. It shouldn't have been too surprising to the boy-he doubted the Minish had many enemies in this place that were their same size and were actually intelligent enough to need to take them anywhere. The area was quiet and devoid of any Minish life-furthering his assumption that no one went there that often.

The old man went through the shabby door and Link followed. Both paused and grimaced at the sight. The masked Minish that had brought the mage to that place were all collapsed on the floor. Vaati was just sitting with his back against the wall seeming quite relaxed. He acknowledged their presence and said, "Well, it's about time."

"W-what did you do?!" Link shouted quite horrified.

The mage waved a hand in dismissal. "Relax, they're not dead. I'm not so stupid that I would go that far."

"You're still stupid!" Mateu snapped. "Coming back after what you've done!"

The pale man glanced over at the old one as if he had just noticed him. "Oh, you. It's been a while hasn't it? Really, I'm surprised alive. Is my luck so bad that Ezlo's alive too?" he said, looking eerily satisfied at the expression he was getting from the old man who was glaring daggers at him. A few of the unconscious Picori were now waking up and scurrying out of the building.

"It looks like you're lucky, then. He died a couple of years after you betrayed him. He never got over it." the Elder said bitterly.

Vaati smirked. "Don't I feel special; I managed to tear his heart out and crush it enough to cause him to die."

"Only you could feel joy from the death of a man who treated you like a son." the old man said angrily.

"That's probably very true." said the sorcerer.

The Elder snorted and then glanced at Link saying, "You talk to him. I can't bear his presence any longer." And then he stomped out, any other Minish that were once out cold following him out.

The boy just looked at the wind mage with disgust and incomprehension. "Why do you hate everything so much?"

The mage narrowed his eyes at the child's comment. "I don't hate everything. Fairies, especially Minish, just so happen to be on the list." he said matter-of-factly.

"Why?" Link asked. He couldn't understand how a person could live with such hate inside of them.

"While you were outside frolicking with your new friends, did you happen to notice anyone out there who looked even remotely similar to me? Pale, purple hair, red eyes? Anyone like that?" Vaati asked bitterly. He didn't even wait for the boy to answer, instead he continued with a venomous tone, "No, you didn't. Wild Fairies, supposed to be of their own faction of Fairies and _I_ was the only one who came out with a resemblance to Winter! I was different and I was ostracized for it. They cursed me for it, so I cursed them for it. An eye for an eye, that's my policy."

Link just stared. He wasn't frightened. No, his gaze was filled with pity because he couldn't imagine living such a bitter and angry life. And the mage sensed that from the icy glare he was giving the boy.

"Why did you shrink us?" Link asked, changing the subject back to their more pressing issue.

"Because the Fairy Queen is somewhere in this village." Vaati said; irritation was still evident in his tone.

The boy forked an eyebrow, unsure of how the pale man could know that. "How do you know?"

"Back on the pirate ship when your mother was aboard, she and the melodramatic pirate were talking. I just so happened to be eavesdropping from the kitchen, it was a bit difficult since they moved around but I managed to catch something. When your mother was first possessed by Leanan, their minds melded for just a moment. Your mother saw what happened to Leanan just prior to when she was possessed. She mentioned something about a fight with another woman and that she dealt a great blow to her. When we fought with Leanan, she mentioned that she would be the Queen of the Fairies and not Venus. She seemed awfully confident about it. I could only assume she did something to the queen while she was here." the mage explained.

"What do you think she did?" Link knew the mage had some sort of idea of it.

"I believe she split the Queen into two or more parts and I believe one of the parts is in this village." he said plainly.

He was confused. "How could you guess that?" he asked the mage.

The mage answered it simply, "Disruption of magical energies in the area."

Link thought for a moment and headed for the door, pausing only to say, "You stay here. No one likes you. It's safer if you stay out of their way."

Vaati just shrugged, saying he didn't really care either way. The boy just rolled his eyes and proceeded to leave the building.

The Elder was outside and Link told him of Vaati's suspicions. The old man thought for a moment. "I think I may know something then… back to my boot!" and then he started walking on his way back to the boot. Link followed closely behind again.

"What's at the boot?" the boy asked. Seriously, he didn't think he saw anything of any significance there except… well… it was a gaudy boot. He wasn't sure that was even significant but…

"Clelia." said Mateu.

"Clelia?"

"The girl that guided you to my boot." the old Minish answered.

"So you think she may know something about the Fairy Queen?"

Mateu nodded. "She should. Years ago she used to frequently visit the Queen in her chamber but she just stopped one day. Ever since she's been somewhat of a recluse. She rarely goes out of her own home-it was shocking to see her today, actually."

The trip back to the boot seemed a lot shorter than when they left it. Upon entering the boot again they found Clelia was not there. The Elder then told Link the Picori girl was probably at her home. So once again, the boy was led through the confusing Minish town. It was even more winding and confusing than before so Link actually kept his attention fully on the old man's back. It was when the winding walking slowed a bit that he started to look around again to see that they were in a residential looking area. The houses here were mostly made up of mushrooms. He didn't even really have to look around to tell; the area reeked of mushrooms-luckily, not the poisonous kind.

The old Picori stopped in front of one of the smaller looking mush-houses and knocked on the door. It opened a crack for a second and then was wide-open revealing a panic stricken Clelia. She and the Elder had a short conversation in Minish and then the girl surrendered and stepped aside. Mateu went in and Link followed, muttering an apology to Clelia as he passed. It was then that he noticed someone else was in the mush-house. The old man started asking the stranger questions in Minish and she just kept shaking her head.

"It doesn't look like they know anything about the Queen." the old man said in defeat.

"I don't think so…" Link said. He was staring straight at the stranger in the house. She didn't look like a Picori… _at all_. This woman had beauty to rival the goddesses and _no one_ seemed to be noticing!

"What do you mean?" Mateu asked.

Link realized why he no one noticed a second later. Surrounding this woman was a shadow consistent with a normal Picori's shape. He took off his hat for a moment and immediately the woman took the form of a Picori. He slipped his hat back on and she changed appearance. The woman seemed to realize this and seemed to be a bit frightened.

"She's the Queen." he told Mateu. "Or a part of her at least." After he said that, the shadow around the woman dropped, which meant the illusion dropped.

"I am half of Venus." the woman said. Link shuddered. As with Leanan, her voice seemed musical and lilting. If this was just half of her, he wondered what all of her was like.

"Why have you sought me out?" she asked somewhat demandingly.

"There's a gateway in the Lost Woods," Link started, "We need you to open it."

"We?" Venus asked. "Who is 'we'?"

"That's not important!" the Elder said quickly. "Will you please help this boy, Your Highness?"

The half-Queen gave a fleeting glance to the Elder and then focused her attention back on Link. "I see now why you need the Gate… Very well, but I require my other half. How did you find me?"

Mateu gave Link a look that said, "I'm not getting into this."

"An… acquaintance…?" the boy said.

Venus forked an eyebrow. "Acquaintance? I must meet with your acquaintance then." she said.

Everyone else in the room flinched.


	45. Return to the Manor

I'm sorry for the late update. I started working on it a few days ago but I've been feeling a bit under the weather. Just earlier today I had this nausea attack. It wasn't pleasant. I might not be able to update Sunday but goddammit I will try.

Gosh I'm tired... But staying up till 12:30 AM on a school night will do that to ya. It's also probably not helping my health much... Oh well. I promised you guys updates, I will stick to it as much as I can. especially since I've been inspired lately.

* * *

Her hand was on the door knob. Link dreaded this moment. She turned the knob and then pushed the door open. She walked in. Link closed his eyes expecting some sort of noise that pointed to maybe… killing… or maiming… but there was nothing.

He opened one eye and saw that Mateu looked just as baffled as him. He into the building to see if everything was alright. He really wasn't sure. Venus was just staring at Vaati with a blank expression on her face. The sorcerer looked annoyed.

"Um…" Link was going to something but… he couldn't really think of anything to say.

"Child, the curse on this man is gone…" said the not quite Fairy Queen. She turned head a bit to give a very, very scary glare to Link. "_Why?_"

Something about her voice at her lost comment made Link flinch. It was almost like… like a Siren screech… He lifted a hand to one ear and felt something stick at his finger tips… He tried not to let the fear show on his face when he realized it was blood. He looked fearfully at the fairy woman before him. She was angry beyond belief and growing more impatient by the second. He opened and closed his mouth, no words coming out. Both were mildly surprised when they heard chuckling from the sorcerer in the room. The queen glared daggers at him.

"A little angry, Venus, to see that I'm back? Yes, you thought after tattling to the goddesses that I was long gone." said Vaati amusedly before he mimicked her glare. "Just so you know, I don't appreciate it."

She was about to snap something when Link found himself running to stand in between them. It was sort of like when Vaati had gotten into fights with Nabooru… except this time it was two spellslingers with tremendous power he was blocking from each other.

"Move." Venus spat. "I will finish him."

"With what magic?" Vaati scoffed. The Fairy Queen seethed but said nothing.

"What does that mean…?" Link asked, more like thinking aloud than anything else. He received an answer anyways.

"Fairy Princess there doesn't have access to the majority of her magic; the other half of her is the _real_ her." the wind mage said, throwing a taunting smile to the woman. Her eyes narrowed at the gesture.

"Okay, I get it!" Link said quickly before any more snide comments could be said by both parties. "How about we all just get along and… not kill each other…?"

Venus huffed moodily but immediately managed to compose herself afterward. She took a calming breath and turned her attention to Link, "Find my other half and I will open the Gateway." She shifted her gaze to Vaati and said, "I am assuming that you are helping this boy for the time being…"

"You'd be right… for the time being." the mage said.

"As much as I hate to even consider the notion… I know the boy was right in taking me to you. You are the only one capable of finding my other half. Help the boy find it and I will somehow manage to forget all that you have done against Fae-kind." she said strenuously.

"That sounds good to me. When are we leaving?"

"Wait but what about-"

Venus didn't let Link finish. "All that's needed is myself. If I had the magic power I would've already gone and found myself." she said. "It should be known, however, that my other half is in your realm."

"Trivialities." the sorcerer said. He was getting a little antsy; Link could tell from his movements. "Let's go, I hate this place."

* * *

Link and Vaati were led back to the flat stone. The Fairy Queen said there was no point in her going to the stone so she would meet with them when they had gone back to normal size. It wasn't that different from the last time, except this time they grew taller rather then shrink down to the size of a bug. He was glad too. If he thought being kid-sized was bad, being Minish sized was worse.

When back to normal size, Venus flitted up them with golden dragonfly like wings. She kind of looked like a golden Navi, except her shape was much clearer than the blue fairy's. He could see that the mage had half a mind to swat her away but he didn't act on it and Link thought that was a very good thing. There were enough problems when it came to him fighting with Nabooru, he really didn't need to add on to the list.

Unfortunately, Venus was swatted away anyways when something came rushing by. Upset, she flew in under Link's hat and he could make out some sort of grumbling from her.

It didn't take long for the boy to recognize the swatter as Poe. The ghostly figure's red eyes were bright with glee and he seemed to be shuddering almost with happiness. He looked so excited, in fact, that rather than holding his lantern in a shaky and shadowy hand, it was floating around eerily by itself.

"Master Vaati!" the Poe cried out, his tone reflecting his apparent mood, "I retrieved it!"

The pale man glared at his spectral servant. "Don't waste time telling me, just hand it over." he said angrily.

The ghost just nodded his head quickly, seemingly intimidated. He threw a shadowy claw-hand into the air. Rather then just clawing at nothing, Link was surprised to see that the ghost actually tore through the air. It actually ripped a whole into nothing. Poe reached in the nothingness and then pulled something gently out. It was long and purple, no real definite shape. The specter gingerly handled the mass of cloth, rearranging it ever so delicately that Link could finally figure out what it was: a cloak. With the same tender, loving care he handled it with, he held out to the mage.

Unlike his servant (or slave, Link wasn't really sure what to go with), the sorcerer did not handle the cloak with care. He yanked it away impatiently and then looked it over, nodding with satisfaction before putting it on. When it was on, he seemed to have lightened a bit.

"One of the only useful things you've ever done, Poe." Vaati said as he smiled slightly while he swished the cloak around a bit.

Link had to admit… it did make him look more like the great wind mage he claimed to be. It scared him. A lot. It reminded him that as soon as everything was all over… he shuddered just at the mere thought of it.

"Alright, you're useless now." the wind mage said to his servant. "Go away." He added with a shooing motion.

The specter wasn't even surprised; he just nodded happily and then disappeared.

Link felt Venus flutter from underneath his hat. From the weight distribution on his head, he figured the Fairy Queen was sitting on his head. He could see her crossed legs bobbing up and down in annoyance from the top of his vision. "You treat your servant even worse than the boy and I." she pointed out.

He sneered at her, "If you want I could treat you both like gutless fools. It wouldn't be a problem since both of you _are_ gutless fools."

The boy could just imagine the golden fairy mirroring the mage's expression as she said, "I think we can do without that."

"Then don't complain." he said flatly.

Without further conversation, they began to make their way out of the Catacombs-and Link couldn't have been happier. He still hated the place, that wasn't going to change any time soon. And, thankfully, the trip had been uneventful. While the ReDead still moaned and groaned, they never came near or they avoided them somehow-another thing that made him glad; he still had shudders when he heard them shrieking.

Outside, Vaati hadn't even given them warning. Immediately he cycloned them out of there. Link, once again started screaming. He thought he heard Venus screaming too, but it could've been his imagination. He couldn't imagine why she would scream; she was a Fairy Queen after all, she'd probably done something like this before if not worse. He let his screams die down when he felt the ground beneath his boots. He was still smacked over the head by Vaati, which also sent the Fairy Queen sprawling in the air.

"How dare you?!" she screeched at him. "Do you even care that you not only struck me, the Queen of Fairies, but the boy as well?! He has done nothing in this life against you and… And you are not even paying attention!" She was actually fuming at the sight of the distracted sorcerer.

He glared at her for a moment before saying, "Shut up." Then he glanced at the manner before the. "There's something wrong. I'm sure you can sense it, magical or not."

Link looked around. Everything seemed fine. Out on the horizon he could still see the Gerudo ship and their skiff was still there. The mansion seemed fine, save for the doors wide open. He glanced over at Venus to see if he could figure out her opinion. She seemed concerned.

"Something has happened there…" she said quietly. She zoomed in under Link's hat.

He took that as a bad sign as he readjusted his hat so the Fairy Queen might be a little more comfortable on his head. Vaati had already started to wander into the manor. Link scuttled to catch up. As he walked in he heard his pale companion curse. He saw why. The main hall, always in disarray, was even more messed up than usual. And the circle that the mage had spent such a long time making... it was still there but there was one small break in the circle. But even Link knew that that was enough to ruin everything.

Once again, he heard the mage curse… and then he heard him say unpleasant things about Nabooru, Dietrich, Evan, and then Nabooru again.

"Where are they?" Link asked. There was no one there, at least not in the main hall.

"Not here." the wind mage snapped. He walked angrily towards the back to the backroom staircase. Link followed closely and felt Venus shift on his head.

"Young hero…" the queen addressed him, "Be on your guard… I sense a great evil has been here."

That was the kind of thing he didn't want to hear.

The pale mage angrily opened each and every door in the hallway at the top of the stairs, getting progressively angrier with each empty room. The boy, on the other hand, was just getting more nervous. He was scared-not necessarily because of the fairy's warning, but because he was afraid for everyone else. What had happened? Was anyone hurt? Did Ganon come to hinder their efforts to stop him?

"Finally…" he heard Vaati mutter as he opened the next door in the hall.

Link looked inside the room and grimaced. It was messed up and there were claw marks on the walls. A table was knocked over and there was a broken chair. Dietrich was in the corner, hugging his knees and muttering something in his gibberish. From the look on his face, he was _not_ in his right mind. Evan sat near him, also speaking in gibberish, almost as if trying to console the not quite sane man. But the older man couldn't hear. He just had the look of a lost child in denial; an insane smile and a sad look in his eyes as he muttered his gibberish. The scene was depressing…

He wanted to say something, to ask what happened but… they couldn't be seen. They were stuck in Faerie.

Vaati picked up some of the pieces of what used to be a chair and started rearranging the pieces on the floor. Evan took noticed and jumped in fright.

"What are you doing? I don't think scaring him is going to help." Link said.

"Just shut up and watch." the mage said with irritation as he kept rearranging the scraps of wood.

After a few seconds, he managed to figure out what was happening. Vaati was spelling something out. He could make out a few words. He looked at Evan who shifted his glasses and looked at the moving pieces of chair with interest. It seemed he had gotten over the initial shock of seeing things move without anything there to move them. Well, they were there but furry eared young man couldn't see them. Finally, the mage had finished and Link looked down at the lettering:

"Do you remember the circle?"

Evan read it and nodded, now knowing who he was dealing with. "Yes, I have a photographic memory. I can fix it in no time; just go back to the main hall."

"The brat is good for something…" the pale man said. He still seemed a bit annoyed but he began to head back to the main hall.

"Why not ask what happened or where's Nabooru?" Link asked the sorcerer. He was a bit taken aback that the mage didn't seem to care about the people that were helping them.

"One, I have no interest." Vaati said, "And two, once we get back you can ask all the questions your little heart desires."

Link frowned but left it alone. He just walked on ahead to the hall.

"He is even more selfish than I remember." he heard Venus say from under his hat. His frown just grew deeper. He made himself think about Zelda, and how this alliance was for her sake.

* * *

Oh, I've been meaning to say it for a while now but I've never gotten around to it. The languange that Dietrich and Evan speak isn't gibberish. It's German. They are German (sort of) so it's their native tongue. I just assume that the Zelda cast is speaking Hylian, not English or any other languange of Earth. So any Earth-language they hear would naturally be alien to them.


	46. Inside the Gate

I _should_ be writing my college essay but I decided to write this instead. Le sigh... I'm going to have to write the damn college essay now...

Oh and **fleets**, of course he's gonna get his cloak back! What kind of wind mage would he be without the swishy cape? ... And it does hold significance later. XD

* * *

Shortly after they were in the main hall, Evan came down with a piece of chalk. He fixed the small break in the circle and cleaned it up a bit before stepping aside. Link followed Vaati into the remade circle and wasted no time with the spell. Things blurred and then unblurred and Link assumed they were back in their own realm. He couldn't be sure since Evan seemed so solemn and not in his normal goofy manner.

"What happened?" Link asked immediately.

The young man sighed grimly. "They just came out of nowhere…"

"What came out of nowhere?" the boy asked.

Evan seemed to be grappling for words, as if he couldn't really think of how to describe it. "These _things_… like black shadows that came from the floor and just started grabbing at us…"

"Floor masters." Vaati said with a nod.

"They broke the circle first… and then they started coming after us…" the furry eared man shuddered. "The young lady and Lord Dietrich fought them off… but…"

"Why's Dietrich acting so loopy? And where's Nabooru?" the boy found his voice was wavering.

Evan looked away, as if he couldn't look him in the eyes and say it. "The young lady… those things… they grabbed her… she fought them but… they just sucked her down… And Lord Dietrich… they took…" he bit his lip and then shook his head, "He's beyond help at the moment."

"They took the doll, didn't they?" Vaati asked the young man as if it was a chore-like a question he already knew the answer to. Evan's silence was all that was needed, though.

Link was puzzled. "Doll? What doll?" he asked.

"Do you remember when you first arrived here? The old fool was fixing a doll. They took that doll." the mage informed him. "He values that thing more than human company. I just touched it once-he went _insane_."

"Without her, he does go insane!" Evan snapped. He seemed almost angry at the wind mage. "She means the world to him! She was the only thing that kept him sane! Now that she's gone…"

"And what did you do to stop it?" the pale man jeered. The young man visibly winced and sorcerer just scoffed. "From the look on your face you did nothing because you're incapable of doing anything. You're just a useless little thing that gets in everyone's way. You couldn't even bring yourself to protect a woman."

"Shut up." It was said in a very life-threatening tone. Link turned around to see that it was said coming from the back hallway. It was Dietrich and he looked… well… he still looked crazy but no longer like a child.

Vaati looked quite insulted when the ex-wizard spoke back to him. "What did you say to me?" he said. Though he had a smile on his face, it was masking anger; Link knew that. He also knew if violence was to break out there was nothing he could do to stop it.

"I said: Shut. Up." the man hissed.

He thought for sure the wind mage would lash out; instead he stood down. "You're still just as crazy as ten minutes ago." he said with disgust.

Inappropriate laughter was always something that Link thought was a symptom of crazy. Dietrich's inappropriate laughter supported that theory. And not only was it inappropriate, it was maniacal. "Crazy! Yes, I'm a complete loon!" he cried out. He laughed crazily some more and then draped himself over Evan's shoulder. The younger looking one seemed a bit frightened at the insane smile on his master's face but didn't say anything. The crazed smile didn't leave his expression as he said, "If you insult my apprentice again, I'll kill you."

Forget Vaati ever being scary, this guy just took the prize. He was crazy and, unlike most crazy people, he _knew_ it-he just didn't care. He said it himself, he was a complete loon.

After a moment or two, he danced around. As he twirled he said, "Oh Queenie, I know you're there! No need to hide! Just look for the marionettes!" and then he hummed a simple tune.

Both Link and Vaati just stared at the crazed man with baffled looks. Venus reluctantly came out from under Link's hat. He could imagine her warily eyeing the crazy man as well.

"Upstairs." Evan said, getting the attention of the duo. He looked very grim and serious but he was clearly addressing the golden fairy on the boy's head. "Marionettes… At the end of the upstairs hall there's a room of marionettes. What you're looking for is there. Take it and go." And with that, he shuffled over to his Master and spoke his gibberish to him.

"I'll be outside…" Vaati muttered as he turned on his heel and headed towards the doors.

Link just stared sadly for a moment at the broken master and his clumsy apprentice. He felt the Fairy Queen tug at a lock of his hair. He took the hint and went to the back staircase. Up he went and down to the very end of the hallway. The door looked older than all the others in the manor. He turned the old knob and opened the door to be immediately assaulted by a dust storm. He and Venus coughed for a moment and shooed the dust away.

He felt a small weight come off his head. The Fairy Queen had fluttered off and was looking around. He took a moment to let his eyes adjust to the small, dark, dusty room. He wished he had closed his eyes again. He'd seen marionettes before, but not like that. These were broken and abandoned puppets, just hanging limply from hooks and gathering dust. It was sad and kind of scary at the same time. He followed the golden fairy light from the queen as she examined every one of the broken puppets. She finally stopped moving around and hovered over one of them.

"It's this one." she said with a hint of excitement in her voice.

"What about that one?" Link asked at he looked at the one she stopped by. Its face was cracked and it was lopsided. The paint was fading and it just looked really, really old. It didn't look like anything special at all.

"This one holds my magic!" she said giddily. It didn't seem quite fitting for a fairy of royalty.

He frowned, "I don't see how-"

He was cut off when a surge of bright light streamed into the fairy. He just stared dumfounded the sight. The light engulfed the tiny woman and just grew brighter and brighter until Link had to shield his eyes. It felt like the light had stayed there forever but it was only a few seconds before it died down. He lowered his arms and let his eyes adjust to the now dimmed down room.

He didn't need to have his vision fully restored to see that the Fairy Queen was now standing in her full glory. She was tall, still retained her golden glow, and, if possible, she looked even more beautiful than before.

"Thank you." she said. He found himself actually shuddering more violently than when he had heard her voice for the first time. He heard her chuckle and almost melted at the sound of it. He wasn't too sure what happened next. He was pretty sure she kissed him on the forehead and he definitely remembered hearing "I will wait at the Gate." He didn't remember leaving the manor too quickly, or even arriving at the mainland.

He returned to his senses when he saw a blue light in front of him. He realized that it was Navi and she was waiting for them at the edge of the Lost Woods. She said a few things, asked a few questions and then moved on. At first he wondered how they got there, but he remembered the wind mage's liking to cyclone travel. The pirates weren't going to be too happy about that but it was a little late to do anything about it.

The trip through the forest was much quieter than last time since Nabooru wasn't with them. He started to feel bad. Nabooru… she was gone too, now. Ganondorf took her too… In fact… he was hurting everyone around Link. He hurt Zelda, the King, his mother, the Zoras, the Gorons, Leanan (even though she was evil he still left her to die), Nabooru, even Dietrich and Evan. He felt a lump in his throat at the thought of the last three. The crazed master and his clumsy apprentice… alone and doomed to be stuck in a foreign place for the rest of their lives… And Nabooru betrayed Ganondorf-he was probably doing unspeakable things to her right now…

"Try not to look so depressed. It kills the mood, you know." he heard his pale companion say. Link had to admit, he didn't expect Vaati to talk to him.

"It's just… this mission isn't just about Zelda anymore…" he said sadly.

"It's never always 'just' about Zelda." the mage said. "She always seems to be one of the main targets but there's always something bigger at stake. You're just always driven by your love for her to save her."

"I suppose you'd know that first hand." he told him.

The pale man paused and then looked back at him with a smirk. "So you figured it out all by yourself and know that we're sworn enemies."

His brow furrowed when he heard that. His hunch was right…

"Oh, don't put on that look!" Vaati said angrily. "I've already told you that I'd deal with you after Ganon is done with."

_That's what's bothering me._ Link thought, but he didn't say it out loud. He did have another question, though. "Was the Fairy Queen's other half always in that place?"

"I think so." the mage said, continuing to follow the blue fairy leading them again. "Dietrich was probably instructed not to reveal its location in order to hinder us."

"Instructed by who?" Link asked.

"The goddesses. Who else?"

The boy was puzzled. "That doesn't make sense. They want Ganon to be stopped."

"They also want me to be stopped." the mage said. "No doubt they're hoping that this adventure could kill two birds with one stone in the end. By slowing us down, they're hoping I might speed up my agenda forcing you to go into self-defense. That's not going to happen. I won't give them the satisfaction."

He definitely had nothing to say about that.

Upon entering the clearing, Navi gasped in amazement. Link could only hear her say, "Your Highness…" faintly. Sure enough, when he looked up, the Fairy Queen Venus was there sitting on the Gate.

"I have been waiting." she said in that lilting voice. "First things first, however." She gave a tense glance to Vaati. "As little as you did, you still helped the boy find my other half. As of now, I will forget everything you have done in the past."

"Much obliged." Vaati said with a mock bow.

She gave him one last glare and then turned her attention to Link. "Young Hero, as thanks for restoring me to my former glory, I will open the gate. It is my hope that what lies inside of it will aid you in your quest." Her dragonfly wings fluttered quickly and lifted her from the Gate. She hovered over it and held her hands together as she began a chant. The carvings on the Gate began to glow brightly and he found himself taking a few steps back. It stayed glowing like that for a few seconds and he thought that maybe nothing would happen, until he heard a sound like stone scraping stone. The Gate began to shake as the doors opened up slowly. As they opened, he was beginning to make something out inside. A pedestal of some sort with something jutting out of it… a sword…

He saw Vaati jerk back.

"What's wrong?" Link asked.

The mage looked very tense. "That… _thing_… doesn't like me." he muttered.

Thing? The sword?

He looked back at the doors, now fully wide. The Fairy Queen stopped chanting. She turned-well, more like twirled with all the grace she had done it with-and looked at Link again. "I have opened the Gate; I will take my leave now." And she began to fade away.

"Oh, oh my!" he heard Navi say. She began to flit around chaotically in circles before she sped through the doors of the Gates.

"'Oh my' what?" Link said confusedly. He started to follow the fairy but paused as he noticed that Vaati was backing away nervously. "What with you?"

"I'm staying out here…" the wind mage mumbled.

The boy shrugged and followed after the blue fairy. She was circling around the sword, as if she was looking it over to make sure it was what she thought it was.

"What is it?" he asked her.

She froze and then hovered by him for a moment. "This is the… the Master Sword! The Blade of Evil's Bane! With this… you can defeat Ganondorf!" she said.

He felt his jaw drop. This sword… he thought it was only a legend… This was not just any sword… this was _the_ Sword! With a capital S! And… and he was supposed to use it?! He found himself jabbering nonsense. Even the lighting in this clearing seemed to be screaming "this is _the_ Sword!"

"Hey!" Navi said, snapping him out of his daze. "Aren't you going to pull it out?"

He started blankly at the blue silhouette for a moment before just barely managing to say, "Pull it out?"

"Link, you're the destined hero! You have to pull it out! Without it you can't defeat the King of Darkness!" she said.

He stared blankly at the sword again. He finally managed to lift his arm up and place a hand on the hilt. He put his other hand on the hilt and then pulled. He expected it to be a bit difficult but it just slid out. He stared blankly at it in its full glory. The blade shimmered in the light with an almost ethereal glow about it.

_"Savior of the Sirens, the Hero reincarnated…"_

He looked around jumpily to find the source of the voice. "Who said that?!"

"I haven't said anything." Navi said warily.

He looked back at the glimmering sword, realizing that it was the one speaking to him.

_"You must take one final test…"_

"A t-test?" he stuttered. "Wait, don't I get a say in thi-" He fell over on himself and twitched.

"Oh my goddesses!" Navi gasped. She fluttered up and down in front of the boy's head, hoping her fairy light would wake him up. No reaction. She stopped and examined his face. His eyes were still open but glassy and dazed. "No, no… Hey! Wake up! Listen! Wake up!" she cried out.

"He's fine!" Vaati yelled out from his place outside of the Gate.

"How do you know?!" the fairy asked frantically.

"That damned thing is putting him through a test of mental courage." the mage said. "He's not dead."

Navi gave a sigh of relief but she didn't hear the sorcerer mutter, "… yet…"

* * *

Truth be told, I don't write about crazy Dietrich that often. I should; insane people are super fun to write about (probably why I like writing about Vaati so much XD). Oh, and that craziness... That's the real Dietrich. He seriously does get like that without the doll.

I think I almost went crazy, myself, when I wrote Navi saying "Hey!" and "Listen!" I kept hearing that annoying little voice in my head... I wanted to strangle someone... But don't worry, no one was hurt in the making of this chapter... except my brain cells.


	47. Vision of the Future

I apologize again for the late update. I really hate it when I don't make deadlines.

Anyways, onto an important subject I've been meaning discuss-how much longer is this story? Honestly, _I have no idea_. I originally estimated around 50 chapters. It will most definitely be under 57 (I'm so exact only because I hate the number 57). Because I'm so psyched about this story, though, I'll crank out early chapters whenever the opportunity arises.

Another important life or death thing I must discuss... Dietrich and Vaati in a crazy contest: who would win? Well, **fleets**, please believe me when I say that Dietrich is incapable of losing a crazy contest unless it's up against the Joker. He's just _that_ messed up in the head. Don't get me wrong, Vaati's a class A nut in his own right, Dietrich's just at a class S.

* * *

Gray. Everything was gray; so gray that he wasn't sure if he was really standing on anything. He couldn't even see his own shadow, just a vast expanse of gray in any direction he looked.

_Is this the test? Stay in a blob of gray?_ he thought to himself.

Figuring that there wasn't anything better to do, he walked forward into the grayness.

He didn't like it - the grayness. It bothered him. It was just so dull… so empty. His feeling of discomfort grew when the scenery then began to contort and change… Like the time when Vaati had taken them to Faerie, except this time he was on his own and he was not being taken to Faerie.

The scenery changed. He was on a beach. It looked like a storm had just hit it. The skies were gray, the water dark and choppy, the sand seemed dull, and the there was driftwood just about everywhere. Something about the beach seemed eerily familiar, though. Upon turning to get a look around he saw why. His sea-side shack was there. Normally, he would've been happy to see it but not this time. He wasn't happy to see it simply because it looked just as ragged and torn up as the beach. As he neared it, he also noticed that not all of the damage was natural. The claw marks on the walls told him that much.

He paused when in front of the slightly opened door; afraid of what he'd see when he entered. He pushed the door open further, its creepy creak getting to him. He had hesitantly gone in and felt a knot form in his stomach when he saw what became of the inside.

To put it simply, everything was trashed. The table was knocked over and cracked, the chairs also knocked over and some missing legs, more claw marks on the walls. Something reeked.

He ran over to his grandfather's room and found the stench grew stronger. The knot in his stomach grew tighter. He could tell they tried to barricade the door. It was broken along with the dresser and what was left of the bed. A few wooden swords were knocked over and broken. The feathers all over the floor told him that the stuffing of bed was torn up. What really disturbed, however, were the splotches of brownish-red coming from the other side of the broken bed. He slowly made his way around.

A glance was all that was needed. After that, he immediately ran out and felt tears sting at the sides of his cheeks as he fell to his knees and threw up. He shouldn't have looked…

He managed to stand up straight again. It was all a dream. What he saw in there… it wasn't real. In reality they were fine and waiting for him to come back with princess… But the image wouldn't leave his head. The bodies… of his mother and grandfather… mangled and… and appearing to be well into decomposition…

He heard an awkward squawking sound and strange footsteps from behind him. He turned and heard more of the squawking while seeing something weird coming from the direction of the town. He was curious to find out what creatures were making these noises but not curious enough to go run out and greet them. He looked around and found a pile of driftwood big enough for him to hide behind – or in if necessary.

He scampered behind it while managing to keep his gaze just enough so he could just barely see what lay beyond the pile. He saw a group of three moblins walk past the pile. Bokoblins… he'd seen them before actually. On the pirate ship, they occasionally passed Bokoblins ships… but they never really did anything too dangerous. He wasn't sure what they were doing there but they seemed interested in looking around. No doubt to see if anything interesting had washed up from the sea. That was going to make his hiding place a little compromising when they decided to check that side of the pile.

They squawked at each other for a bit and spread out a little, just giving cursory examinations to each of the piles. He reached for his sword and froze. He hadn't noticed until that moment. He didn't have a sword on him. Keeping as calm as he could he reached for his boomerang on his belt. It wasn't there. He felt himself panic and was sure that at least one of the Bokoblins would find him in his distressed and vulnerable state.

He heard a squawk and another… the squawk was getting closer. He could swear he could feel one breathing on him until some sort of horn blew from a distance. The Moblins squawked in acknowledgment and shuffled over towards the sounds. Link perked up as well, wondering what the horn meant. It probably wasn't one of his best ideas, but he decided to follow the Bokoblins. It wasn't like he had any other ideas to go on.

He carefully followed the creatures and managed to avoid the sight of two others that soon joined them on their trek towards the horn. They were heading into Castle Town, and to Link's further horror, he saw that the town was deserted (or it seemed to be anyway) and looked like it had been so for years upon years. He thought he'd see something move from boarded up buildings sometimes, but he couldn't tell if it was human or not.

More Bokoblins came and Moblins began to appear in the broken down town, which made things a little more difficult for him to get around, but not too difficult. They didn't seem all too bright and through all their strange squawking they couldn't hear him behind them. That was just fine with him, but he still stuck to the shadows in case one of them was observant.

He felt the knot starting to reform in his stomach when he took note of where they were all headed.

Hyrule Castle.

It was different. It looked the same but it was… different. It definitely went through a change in decoration. Decoration probably wasn't the right word for it, though. There were stockades lining the inside of the walls surrounding the castle, most all of them holding some very miserable and half starved looking people. He didn't think all of them were moving anymore…

An even grimmer touch was the gallows. While Link had never seen a hanging he knew the gallows were only set up when executions took place. Whenever he did see the gallows, the wood always looked relatively clean but the gallows here… The wood was worn and the legs that held the bulk of the gallows had sunk into the ground enough for Link to see that it was in frequent use. Someone was going to get hanged…

Link felt a rush of horror surge through him when he saw Nabooru walk up onto the gallows. It took him a few moments to realize that she wasn't bound. He also had a hard time registering the fact that she had a content look on her face. In fact… she wasn't even acting like Nabooru! That person there looked exactly like her but… even the way she walked seemed different.

She began to speak to the crowd, calling the Bokoblins and Moblins her comrades and using speech she didn't normally use. She started to give the "news of the day." The Gorons and Kakariko were conquered; they would be having no more resistance from them. There was a revolt as the Zora's Domain, more of them would need to go to "crush the threat to the kingdom" and that volunteers were needed. As she kept speaking of such matters, Link just couldn't understand. Why was Nabooru saying things like that?

The Bokoblins and Moblins separated themselves - volunteers from those who wished to remain. Nabooru nodded to the volunteers. "The Great King Ganondorf is kind to those who fight for him." she said.

Okay, new question. Why was she saying something like _that_?

Everything blurred into gray again but a silhouette began to form in front of him. He gasped when he saw what the silhouette solidified into.

"Zelda…" he just barely whispered.

The girl looked serious. "Not quite," she said. The voice sounded exactly like Zelda's, except more mature.

He was almost a little angry that it wasn't really Zelda. "Then what are you and why do you look like her?!" he yelled bitterly. If he had a weapon on him he would gone for it and held it at her neck. The pseudo-Zelda had no expression.

"I am the spirit of the Blade of Evil's Bane. I took this form because it is the one you trust most." she said.

"And if you're not really her how do you expect me to trust you?" he asked her.

The spirit forked an eyebrow, showing the first sign of any emotion from itself-amusement. "Blade of _Evil's Bane_." she emphasized.

Link frowned but nodded his head in defeat. "Point taken."

"What I showed you just now," the spirit said, getting straight to the point, "Was the fate of Hyrule should you fail."

He was relieved to hear that it really was just a fabrication but distress managed to overwhelm the relief. "If I don't win… Then…" he couldn't bring himself to finish.

The pseudo-Zelda nodded grimly. "Hyrule will be no more; all hope will be lost."

He felt himself shiver a bit. "So if I don't win, the world ends… No pressure, right?" he had hoped adding a witty comment like that would help boost his confidence. It didn't and the spirit of the sword wasn't laughing at it, either.

"Knowing that you might lose, do you think you can still fight?" she asked.

"Of course I can…" he said. "As scared and terrified as I am… I made a promise…"

"To the girl whose form I take." The spirit finished for him.

He nodded.

The spirit frowned and furrowed her brow. "You would really go so far as to risk not only your own life, but the lives a hundreds of people just so you can save this girl?"

"When you put it like that it sounds bad," Link said, "But I need to save her!"

"You don't need to." replied the sword spirit. "You don't have to be the hero."

Link shook his head. Why was the sword interrogating him like this? "I have to be the one who saves her!"

"But you must destroy Ganondorf to do so and you cannot do that without me."

He was getting annoyed. This spirit was very argumentative. "So you're saying you won't help me save her?!"

"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. If you are doing this only for the girl, willing to die in an attempt to save her, I cannot help you. There are times when you must run if it means to fight another day and save the world. You will not do that."

"Damn right I won't do it!" Link snapped, finally letting out all the rage he had been storing in this battle of words with the spirit. "If there's even the smallest chance that I can save Zelda, I'll do it! Even if the world ends because I save just her, I'll die happy!"

The spirit looked at him with a mixture of apparent pity and confusion. He could understand the pity part, because even he had to admit that last sentence was stupid. If the world ended she'd die anyways… But the confusion bit he didn't understand. Was it so hard to understand human emotions? Apparently, to non-human spirits and people like Vaati-who had the emotional capacity of a piece of cheese-emotion and feeling were foreign concepts.

The not really Zelda just gave him one more strange look before saying, "I see…" and then she disappeared.

Link stepped forward to try and catch it but it was already gone "Wait! How do I get out of…" the scenery was changing just as he said, "here…"

This time it was a place he was sure he had never seen before. It felt damp and it was for the most part empty, save for some large shells. The walls were stone and the floors had puddles. He heard drops of water falling from somewhere-maybe a leak in the ceiling? He walked and almost tripped over himself when he noticed himself. He wasn't sure how he almost tripped since he was see-through. But someone had heard him almost trip.

"Who's there?"

That voice… He hated to hear it so frightened… but was it… was it really her…?

He ran around one of the shells and saw her. She looked ragged and scared. Her hair was a mess, she had bruises on her face, and there were stains on her dress. Her eyes widened at the sight of him. This was the real Zelda, he knew it.

"Link…?" she asked hesitantly.

"Zelda… is that really you…?" he found himself squeaking.

She gasped fearfully and buried her hands in her face. "Oh… Oh goddesses, you're a ghost…" she began to whimper.

"N-no!" Link said, wishing he could touch her to assure her that he really was there. "I don't know how, but somehow… I'm here? I don't know it's some magicky stuff! But I'm alive! And I'm going to come here and save you!"

She looked up at him, wiping any tears she had cried out. Now she looked a bit irked. "You idiot!" she said. "I told you not to come save me!"

"Well that's what I've been trying to do for weeks now!" he said, feeling a bit insulted that _that_ would be one of the first things she had to say to him after so long.

She bit her bottom lip and looked at him moodily. "I told you not to…"

"I don't care! I'm coming to save you!"

"I told you not to!" she snapped angrily. "Why are you coming to save me when I told you not to?!"

"Because I love you!" he blurted out angrily. Both of them stayed in a stunned silence. He wished he could dig a hole… a very, very deep hole… and stay in that hole… until he died… He was too young for love! How could he just blurt something like that out?! How could he just so readily admit to that?! And why wasn't he denying it straight out?!

"Link…" Zelda said quietly. He winced and looked at her sheepishly. She had a serious look on her face. "You better come save me now…" she said as a slight flush came over cheeks.

He stared at her blankly for a moment before the scenery started changing again, but not to gray. Everything was getting dark now. He could hear Zelda call out to him from far away.

* * *

Believe it or not, I actually don't like the idea of childhood sweethearts. It's always made me gag. But then again I was one of those little girls who always thought boys had cooties when I was little. D:


	48. To Take a Ship

It's a few minutes late. I was a bit distracted throughout the weekend... But on the bright side I got these socks with R2-D2 on them! I'm so easy to please...

* * *

Summoning up what little courage he had, Vaati managed to slowly tread past the Gate towards where the fallen boy lay. The child was clutching onto the Master Sword tightly and staring into nothing. He'd twitch every now and again and every time he did so, Navi would flit nervously around his face.

The mage just eyed the Sword warily. That sword was sentient, he knew it. He also knew they shared a feeling of mutual dislike towards each other. But at the same time he knew that sword wasn't meant for him. That was the only thing he felt that allowed him to get so close to it.

"He's been like this for a while…" the blue fairy said anxiously. "Should we try to wake him up?"

He hated the sound of that fairy's voice. Just to shut her up he'd try something. He kicked Link in the abdomen, not as hard as he would have liked, but received no response. "He's not going to wake up any time soon."

The boy then began to stir and he mumbled something.

"I spoke too soon…" the mage grumbled.

Navi flitted in front of child's face worriedly. "Oh goodness, Link, are you all right?! You just fell over and…" she didn't finish as the slightly dazed boy just sat up groggily.

"Am I dead?" he asked sleepily.

"Not yet." Vaati told him in an almost bored tone.

Link just looked around awkwardly for a moment. Everything that had happened in that gray place wasn't real… But he could swear that the last part with the real Zelda was real. He felt a surge of power leap through his left hand and immediately shot awake. At the same time he had the surge Vaati stepped back quickly, looking as if he felt his life was in danger. The boy gripped the Sword in his hand and looked down on it. It glowed more brightly than it had when he had first pulled it out.

"It's accepted you as its master!" Navi said cheerfully.

He just gave the Sword a strange look. It had taken the form of Zelda and argued with him that his reason for wanting to fight Ganon wasn't good enough. It said it refused to help yet… it was lending him its power now?

_"Willing to sacrifice so much just for the sake of one person…"_ he heard the Sword say to him in his mind, _"Love that strong assures that you cannot lose."_

And he suddenly understood. That was the Sword's true test. He grinned and stood up, gripping the Sword tightly and watching the metal gleam in all its glory.

"If you're done gawking at _it_," he heard Vaati hiss, "Put it away!"

Link gave the mage an irritated glance but put the Sword away. As soon as it was safely tucked away into its scabbard, the sorcerer regained some of his composure.

"Happy now?" Link asked sarcastically.

"Just peachy." said the wind mage sourly. "Let's get out of here."

They were not led out of the forest by Navi. No, Vaati had to use his cyclones. On the bright side, Link had learned not to scream during the whole process of cycloning now. He still closed his eyes and wished he was on the floor, though.

When he felt the floor beneath his boots and opened his eyes. He could tell that they were outside the gates of Castle Town but that was it; he was immediately pulled away to the side. Everything blurred as it happened but he could clearly make out a flaming arrow flying past.

"What's happening?" he squeaked, not even daring to look where the fire ball had come from.

"Ganon's made his move." said the irritated wind mage.

"Made his move?" the boy asked.

Vaati nodded. "You didn't seriously think he was just going to wait for you to waltz in sand save your princess? He has a plan and it's to take over Hyrule. While we were out he must've sent some lackeys to start here." he explained.

Link grimaced and almost wished he could peer over the edge of the wall to see what was going on. He heard the awkward squawking of Bokoblins drifting away, probably getting backup. That's when a horrible realization came into his head. "We don't have a boat and we don't where the Siren's fortress is! How are we going to get there!?"

The mage looked at him almost as if he had just been insulted. "Don't insult my intelligence. I already thought of that…" then he looked a bit rattled. "I just didn't expect this…"

"Whatever," Link said, "What did you think of."

"Steal a boat, obviously." the mage said.

That was a bit of stupid question. Of course Vaati was going to say that… But, as the mage had said when he was still Haizea, he couldn't let his morals get in the way. "How are we going to do this now?"

The sorcerer forked an eyebrow but gave an approving smile. "I can fly us to the docks, after that we'll steal a ship." he said.

"But what about the crew?" the boy asked. All ships had a crew. Unless they could find a small boat that could be managed by just two people, whatever boat they chose was going to have a crew - and given the town's change of management, the crew probably wasn't going to be very amiable.

An evil grin came upon the mage's face. "No need to worry about that…"

_That means I need to worry…_ Link thought miserably not even bothering to hide it in his expression.

"Well," the mage started cheerfully, "No time to dillydally."

Before Link could even interrupt to ask if he could have a moment to mentally prepare for the cyclone, it just happened. A cyclone swooped them up into the air. This time around, he warily and fearfully kept his eyes open. It felt like hours watching Castle Town through the air. He regretted keeping his eyes open. He saw people fighting against Bokoblins and a few Moblins. They were all too busy fighting each other off to notice a cyclone flying towards the docks. Except for one person with wide eyes and a fascinated look. He almost didn't recognize Rayeh with her hair down, but since she wasn't a maid anymore she didn't need to keep it up.

Vaati apparently noticed her as well as they passed over her. "I always knew there was something special about that woman, from the first moment I saw her." he said with an evil little grin. "When this is done, she'll be the first."

"That's gross and wrong…" Link muttered, momentarily forgetting the sheer terror he normally felt on the cyclone trips. It quickly returned, though, when they were in the landing process.

They landed safely on a boat, a smaller one that still required a crew of more than two people. Four Bokoblins surrounded them quickly as they landed. Link immediately sent a hand to the hilt of his sword but Vaati grabbed his arm to stop him.

"No need for that." he said, eyes focused straight ahead on the Bokoblins. He snapped his fingers and the bat winged eyeballs from the Catacombs popped up from thin air. "Take care of them-but don't kill them."

The winged eyes made some sort of weird noise (Link didn't even want to ask how) that almost sounded like a happy squeal. Then, if possible, a malicious look came upon them and they just attacked the Bokoblins. The one that wasn't attacked just ran around in circles squealing frantically.

"Aren't they adorable?" asked the wind mage, looking on gleefully.

The boy just continued to stare, horrified. He didn't even want to answer that.

The winged eyes herded the Bokoblins over by the rail of the ship. Vaati just walked over with an air confidence and superiority. "Well," he said, "In a bit of jam aren't you?" They just continued to squawk helplessly as the black eyes flapped around them. "Work for me aor I let my little pets eat you. How does that sound?"

The Bokoblins didn't even think. They just got on their knees and groveled.

The mage grinned and then glanced at Link. "I told you you didn't need to worry." Then he looked back at his new lackeys. "What are you still on your knees for, get the ship prepped and ready to take off!" he snapped. The creatures jumped fearfully and scattered, each doing their own little task.

"But what about other monster guys?" Link asked worriedly. "Won't they notice?"

Vaati rolled his eyes. "Believe me when I say that these creatures don't have the mental capacity to notice these kinds of things until it's too late." he said.

A flying eyeball then came and fluttered around them. The mage patted it on the head gently and the eyeball shook in delight. Then it fluttered over to Link and settled on his shoulder. He tried not to panic.

"Oh relax. She doesn't bite." The mage said. "Besides, she seems to like you."

The boy shuddered in discomfort as he felt the leathery bat wings of the creature brush against his neck. "Why not just make them go away?" he asked, his voice trembling.

"Can't risk mutiny." the mage said simply before heading towards the door to the cabin. "If you need anything I'll be in the captain's cabin."

Link felt his shoulders sink. He didn't want to be alone with all these… _things_… around him.

A Bokoblin walked near him and squawked in his face a bit hesitantly. He jumped a bit and tried not to scream in fear. The thing squawked again and then he realized it was trying to ask him something.

"Um… say that again… please?" he just barley managed to ask.

It squawked awkwardly and he actually managed to understand one word "… heading?"

"A… a heading?" he said. The creature nodded and he finally understood. "That's right, you don't know where we need to go…" he ran over to the side of the boat, the Bokoblin following closely behind him. He frowned when he saw nothing at first but then a head popped up from the water. It was Raidne. He smiled as she waved at him happily. The creature that followed him squawked nervously but Link just told him, "She'll lead us to where we need to go. Just follow her."

The Bokoblin hesitantly nodded and then walked away to tell its comrades. He felt the eyeball shiver on his shoulder. He still felt a bit unnerved by its presence but now he was slightly comforted by having it around. Without it, that Bokoblin might've thrown him overboard. He brushed a finger over it lightly, causing it to shiver happily.

"Thank you… I guess…"

* * *

**fleets**, I happen to believe that if a person is that messed up, knows it, and doesn't care, that's even worse than if they didn't know. And yes... Vaati and cheese... perhaps two of the greatest things on the planet... Though, I don't think he appreciates being compared to cheese. XD


	49. Under the Sea

Hehe... I loled at the title of this chapter. I watch too many Disney movies... Speaking of which, did anyone hear that Re: KHCoM is coming to the US?! I'm so exciteD! SQUEE!

Anyways, short chapter, and this time _I apologize for nothing._ I would've spent more time on this but it's been the week from hell and I've been going to sleep at midnight every night and it hasn't been working out very well... I gotta be honest and say I value sleep more than whether this chapter is short or not. But I promise I'll be making the next chapter long. Especially since (pardon my Americano), _shit_ _is going to go down_ next chapter. We're getting so close to seeing the end... Oh goodness...

* * *

Following a mermaid seemed to be pretty difficult for the Bokoblin crew. They complained a lot and Link regretted that he was now beginning to understand their warbled grasp of Hylian. But it wasn't so bad. After the first few hours of complaining they left him alone for the most part. He still kept his guard up and as long as Amity (the name he decided to give the flying eye that seemed to like him) was around, the Bokoblins kept their distance-and that was something he didn't mind at all.

For the most part, he spent most of his time leaning over the side to watch the Sirens jump alongside the boat. They were all there and they took turns leading the way. Teles was guiding the way at the moment. Truth be told, he wasn't even really paying attention to the Sirens either.

He absentmindedly scratched Amity's head as the scenes from Castle Town flashed through his mind. For some reason, he had never thought that was going to happen. He never really thought Castle Town could be conquered. It always seemed so impenetrable. But to see all those people fighting against Bokoblins and Moblins… He knew not everyone knew how to use a sword either. He worried about the king, he worried about Rayeh, and he was hideously worried about his mother and grandfather. He felt queasy when the Master Sword's grisly image from his test came into his mind. He hoped with all his heart that wasn't going to happen.

Amity then squealed and flapped off of his shoulder, her eye looking almost insulted. Link knew why. He could feel the warmth of the Master Sword emanating, as if trying to comfort him that everything was going to be fine. He smiled, glad that even though it was just a Sword, it was his friend too. He'd had the Sword for only a few hours but he knew it was his friend.

As quickly as the feeling of warmth came, it left. He expected Amity to come back to his shoulder but she didn't. She seemed a bit miffed from the Master Sword daring to disturb her happy place on the boy's shoulder. It was almost as if she thought Link had done it purposely. It made him a bit sad, actually. As creepy as the thing was, he had to admit it was cute in its own way. And among all the crazy monsters and people, it was the only one that didn't seem to show any hostility towards him. He wasn't sure if maybe Amity sensed this or she just got over it, but she eventually made herself at home on his shoulder again.

He didn't pay attention to time. He just zoned out, watching the ocean as they sailed through it. The only time that time became noticeable was when the sky began to turn to shades of orange and yellow and the sun started lowering on the horizon. He'd been on ships several times before, he lived by the beach… but he'd never really seen a sunset and appreciated it.

It was beautiful.

He heard a warbly Bokoblin squawk from next to him. "Beautiful." it said.

He blinked blankly at the creature. He didn't know when it got there but… it seemed like it was at peace.

"Yeah…" Link muttered.

The other Bokoblins then walked up to the rail. They all watched the sunset and Link couldn't help but smile. Monsters… he wasn't sure if that was the right way to describe the creatures around him now. Amity was friendly enough, despite being freaky looking and having the ability to tear flesh from bone within seconds. And the Bokoblins, they were cowardly and fickle, but they still had an appreciation for beautiful things. He'd be lying if he said he hadn't noticed that all of them were wearing joy pendants (he personally thought they were ridiculously cheesy and ugly but a lot of people seemed to think they were pretty). He didn't know if it was completely true or not but he had a feeling that the only difference between them and him, at the moment, was just looks and choice of occupation.

That was when he frowned. He never thought of it like that….

"Why is the ship veering off course?" the voice caused a chill to go up everyone's spin, except for Amity, who was not only devoid of a spine, but fluttered happily from Link to the voice.

Vaati stood there with arms crossed. He was smiling but it was definitely not a happy smile. In fact it was actually kind of a malicious smile that said he had an evil scheme up his sleeves. The Bokoblins quickly scattered in a panic and busied themselves. The boy wasn't so intimidated, though. He just rolled his eyes and went back to leaning on the rail. The mage went up and stood next to him by the rail.

"It seems you've realized that the only difference between you and those idiots is your appearance." said the wind mage emotionlessly.

"I guess…" the child mumbled. He didn't like to think of it like that.

"Don't let it get to you." Vaati told him, "They're still creatures bound to evil. You may see and appreciate the same things but you're on opposite sides of the playing board. Even if you did get fuzzy with them, you'll always be enemies."

"Like you and me." Link said almost sadly.

"Exactly like us." Unlike Link, Vaati seemed to say it almost happily. There was a loud splash from the water. Both of the two looked over the edge. Molpe was there and with the sight of her, both of them forgot their conversation. "Hmph. Seems we've arrived."

Link looked around and saw nothing but more water. "There's nothing here." he said.

"There's nothing on the surface," the mage pointed out.

He didn't get it but the mage let him think it over. When he finally did get it he found himself whispering, "It's… it's not on the surface…"

He wondered what exact expression he had on his face that caused the sorcerer to almost break out in laughter. But the pale man stifled his laughter and said, "That's right."

"So… how do we get down there?!" he asked in a panic.

Vaati shrugged. "I have no clue. They said they would take care of it." He said plainly.

"Well ask them!" the boy demanded in a panic.

"I don't take orders from you anymore," the mage snapped angrily. "Besides, why? They said they would handle it."

"But-" Link couldn't finish his sentence. The ship lurched and froze. He heard the questioning and frightened squawks of the Bokoblins. He wouldn't be surprised if he was making question and frightening squawks either. The only one who seemed unperturbed by all of this was Vaati.

"Well, this already seems fun." he said with a bit of a creepy contentment in his voice.

He just gave the man a horrified look. "You have a very strange idea of fun." He said.

And then, bow first, the ship lurched down into the water. He expected to feel the water slam against his body, to send him swashing about in the depths and to feel the air escaping his lungs. He seriously thought he was going to die and could've sworn that he saw his life flash before him in a matter of milliseconds.

Nothing happened.

"You are _so_ dramatic." he heard Vaati say in annoyed tone.

He opened his eyes, just noticing that he had gotten in a defensive position when he thought the ocean would take him. The Bokoblins were running and screaming in a frenzy, apparently not realizing that they were still alive. He wasn't sure how they were alive, to be honest… until he noticed around the ship. It was like they were in a giant bubble. He managed to get a closer look at the wall of water around them. He could make out a shadow in the water; a combination of a woman and a fish.

"The Sirens are doing this…?" Link thought aloud.

"They say we'll remain in this bubble for a while." Vaati said, perhaps realizing that Link didn't need an answer to his question.

"How deep are we going go?" this was a question Link hoped would get answered. He wasn't sure he anted to know the answer, however.

The wind mage grinned evilly. "Deep. _Very_ deep. Just imagine what were to happen if these fish women were to lose focus on this bubble." he taunted.

The boy gave him a foul look but the mage looked way too happy for his own good. He couldn't understand how a person could take so much joy from torturing others…

* * *

I've never mentioned here on FFN but I'm conisdering making a seqel to this. I have my doubts, though, since it would be very OC centric-Vaati being the only one who would make any frequent appearences. It actually wouldn't be much of a sequel, either, since it would probably be a one shot or just ridiculously short. I don't know... I might do it, I might not, but I'm seriously leaning on the "might not" side.

One thin's for sure. Poe will get his own spin-off. It might be a sidestory to be put in as a bonus in this story, or a oneshot to be in it's own separate thing. I've got a think about it, but I suppose you'll all find out soon enough...


	50. The Ocean Fortress

I blame this late update entirely on Pokemon Diamond. DAMN YOU POKEMON GAMES! With your... addictiveness... and... addictiveness... I mean, come on, it's the same crap over and over again but... You just can't help but play it... D: Oh yeah, and my internet is crap. I want stab sometimes if it was stabbable.

Oh **fleets**, deadlines actually aren't as horrible as they seem. You see, if I didn't work with deadlines, we'd probably still be at chapter 21, maybe even 16. If I don't have a deadline, I cant write as often or as good as I can. Deadlines work for me, and I thought I wouldn't enjoy it at first. Truth be told, I actually like deadlines now because it forces me to get things done. If I didn't have them I'd be all like, "I'll write that some day" and then thirty years later I'll still be going "I'll write that some day" because I'm very, very lazy... Contrary to popular belief, forced writing can actually be a very good thing.

Oh and no. No crossovers for me. Did one once. i turned a reasonble and somewhat enjoyable storyline and turned it into an assbucket. My brain itches just at the thought of it. D:

* * *

Now that they were actually beneath the waves and getting deeper, Link's sense of time was nil. They could've been down there for hours or for minutes. He really couldn't tell. Amity seemed to have deserted Link in place of her master so he was feeling a bit alone again. Even though he could've hung around the Bokoblins, he thought it might be a bit weird if he came on so friendly. That and Vaati and his winged friends were having fun terrorizing them-something he was sure he didn't want to be associated with.

He also couldn't see where exactly they were going, not that he knew what the underwater world looked like but still… It would've been nice to see if they were getting close. He was pretty sure a presumably huge fortress wouldn't be too hard to spot, even underwater, but with the wall of deep blue around them he couldn't be sure if the place was three feet in front of them or three hundred.

Even worse was that horrible tension he was feeling. It was like the calm before the storm. He remembered that the day before a hurricane was almost always beautiful. Now… nothing was happening. Nothing out of the norm was happening and it was disturbing him because he knew as soon as that ship stopped, he was going to confront Ganondorf. The Sword had gotten warm on his back again, but even the Sword couldn't calm his nerves again. His nerves were having a wild party but his confidence wasn't invited. He just remembered what he heard Zelda say when the Master Sword allowed him to see her. He had to save her… but he still couldn't help but panic.

Some indeterminate time later, the ship lurched again. Just about everyone fell or stumbled over. Link was one of the ones who fell on his face. Quickly scrambling to his knees he looked around.

"We're here." Vaati informed.

"Here? But I can't see-" Link couldn't finish because the ship lurched again, throwing him on the floor again. With that last lurch he heard a splashing sound, a very large splashing sound. He jerked up again and saw that they were surfacing into some kind of cavern. In the cavern was a castle-like structure that made his jaw drop. It was enormous - even bigger than Hyrule Castle-!

The Sirens splashed around from the bottom of the boat. No translation was needed from the mage. From the looks on their faces they were saying, "Hurry up and get us our home back!"

Vaati scowled at them and then glared the Bokoblins. "None of you leave this ship." he snarled. The creatures just nodded quickly. Then he proceeded to the rail. "Come on, boy, hurry up; unless you want spatter yourself on the floor."

Link jumped up and followed. Without another word they both jumped off, though the boy did so hesitantly. He couldn't say he exactly trusted Vaati, but he trusted the mage enough in his word that he wouldn't try anything until Ganon was dealt with. They landed safely on the ground but the Bokoblins started to squawk shortly after. They both turned and saw why they were screeching in such a panic.

Hands. Enormous, black, clawed hands were in the water grabbing the Sirens. The mage next to him cursed and tried to fling some sort of magic at the hands. But whatever spell it was didn't reach the floor masters. They disappeared into black puddles within the water, taking the struggling Sirens with them.

"It seems we have to rescue them yet again." the sorcerer said grudgingly.

The boy just stared warily at the water. "Does this mean Ganondorf was expecting us?"

"Probably." said the mage. "Might as well spring the trap." He then carried on towards the fortress, ordering his little wigned minions to stay behind and watch the Bokoblins.

With one last worried look at the water and the frightened Bokoblins, he went on to catch up to the pale man. Amity decided to flutter by and give him a little flutter with a leathery wing on his cheek. He didn't mind; he actually appreciated the little goodbye gesture from the creature.

One thing he could tell immediately from this place was that it had no doors. Just big door shaped holes. They entered through the formal entrance which lead them to a very grand entrance hall. Statues of various sea creatures and the Sirens themselves decorated the hall. He also recognized the strange light orbs from the second temple lighting the hall. On each of the three walls beside them were all equally large door holes.

"I don't take it you have any idea where the princess is?" Vaati asked.

Link shook his head. "No…"

"And if he expected us," the mage continued, "Chances are the princess is with him."

He didn't even try and hide is grimace. His nerves were still having that wild party and his confidence was still oblivious.

"Well if it isn't the kid and pale face." The voice came from the door hole in front of them. Nabooru came from the shadows, walking and moving in the fashion that wasn't her.

"And if it isn't a Gerudo hag." Vaati hissed.

This Nabooru had no reaction to the statement. Both of them knew that something was wrong but Link knew more. She was acting just like she was acting in the Master Sword's vision.

"You're not really Nabooru." he said.

She shrugged. "Whatever would make you think that?" she obviously wasn't being serious about the question.

"It is her." the mage said.

"But she's-"

"She's not herself but _is_ her, in a manner of speaking." he said.

A slow clap rang throughout the hall. Nabooru was smiling smugly, but something in her look… it wasn't her at all. "Bravo, mage. It looks like you found yourself, if not you wouldn't have been able to recognize our spell."

"Our?" Link asked. "What's she mean by that?"

Vaati either ignored him or didn't hear. He was smirking. "Twinrova, the twin witches of Koume and Kotake. What are you doing in such an unattractive woman-that's not your style."

It looked like that last comment hit a nerve on Nabooru-if it was Nabooru. "What we do is none of your business you failure of a sorcerer!" she snapped.

The mage chuckled amusedly. "Link," he said in a voice only the boy next to him could hear, "I'll distract her-don't worry I won't harm her-you go through where she came from. You should find the puppet masters that way." Right after he finished that he threw his arms to the side and Nabooru went flying.

He didn't waste time. He ran right past both of them and into the passage straight ahead. There was a lack of lighting in this passage, but there was a light at the end of it. He ran into the room and a wall of incense slammed him in the face. It was very muggy and warm and he heard the cackling of… old ladies? It wasn't so misty in the room that he couldn't see what was in front of him. There were two old ladies there, disproportionate and frail looking, sitting at a table and cackling wildly.

"Well, well, well, Koume! Looks like a little bug had wandered into our midst!" cackled one old lady.

"Ehehehe! We should smash it, right Kotake?" said the second.

Both started floating up into the air, one glowing blue and another glowing red, laughing maniacally. Link unsheathed his sword and held it in front of him and saw the blade was glowing brightly. The two old ladies seemed to float back nervously but they just continued to cackle. One of them threw a red blast at him. He dodged and felt the heat from the blast land nearby. It was then that he realized that was fire. He tried not to panic and quickly moved aside as a blue blast came towards him. Dodging it as well, he took note a sheet of ice covered the floor where it landed. He tried not to seem too panicked but from the condescending comments coming from the two witches above him, it wasn't working.

There wasn't that much space in the room, he could only dodge so many times. More blasts of fire and ice were fired. He was running out of space and he didn't know what to do. His sword couldn't reach the witches and the way they were moving wouldn't let his boomerang strike them easily.

_"Strike the magic!"_ he felt the Sword tell him. He looked at it quickly in confusion, but a blast of fire came towards him. He struck the blast, feeling the heat so close to his hands. But it didn't burn. The sword actually deflected the blast of fire and sent it flying back. It hit the blue witch and she gave a shrilly scream.

"Sister!" she shouted. "You're supposed to be hitting him not me!" and then she sort of disintegrated into blue dust that fell to the floor.

The other old woman then screamed angrily, shouting very unpleasant things at Link. She swooped down and Link jumped away. She threw a fire blast at him but he didn't try to deflect it this time. He knew fire against fire wouldn't work in this case. That worried him… What was he going to do now.

Dodging another blast of fire he found himself jumping against a bookshelf. The shelf rattled and few books fell, but more importantly, a vial fell right into Link's hands. Reading the label on it, he grinned deciding to think how good his luck was some other time. The fire witch screamed and swooped at him. He rolled away and as he did so, threw the vial at her. She shrieked as ice began to incase her. It didn't take long to fully trap her inside. Link then just walked over and slammed his sword into the block ice, sending it shattering all over the place. The shards burst into red dust and he thought he could hear a scream.

He did hear a scream, actually. It was coming from the entrance hall. Then he remembered Nabooru. He ran back and saw that Nabooru was on her knees and grabbing her head desperately. Vaati just stood a few feet away from her, unfazed. He looked over at Link, giving him a smirk and a nod of approval. He just ignored the mage and ran to Nabooru. He went to touch her shoulder and was about to ask if she was alright when she grabbed him and flung him right into the sorcerer.

An irate wind mage shoved him off quickly after they stopped skidding. They both shambled up and saw Nabooru glaring at them fiercely with eyes that weren't her own.

"Foolish little pests!" she rasped. "We'll not go down without at least one of you!"

And then, a blue and red blast surged out of her body and towards the two. Link's limbs seemed to freeze up. He had the master Sword out but his arms were stiff. He knew he couldn't swing it. And his legs… they just weren't moving.

"Idiot of a boy!" he heard Vaati say. The mage grabbed him and then flung his cloak around them both. Link didn't know how that would help. He knew that blast of magic was on them. But instead of being fried and/or frozen to death, it just felt like a shockwave just hit them. After a few seconds, the mage peeked over his cloak and then lowered it while shoving the boy aside again.

"How'd we not die?" Link squeaked.

The wind mage rolled his eyes at the boy. "You think the pretty purple cloak is just for show? I enchanted it centuries ago; it's a shield against magical attacks. Comes in quite handy." he said. "Don't you want to check in the woman now?"

Link blinked for a moment and felt guilty that he almost forgot about Nabooru. He quickly got up and sped over to the fallen pirate. She was sprawled on the floor but just knocked out. He sighed in relief.

But the relief was not to last. He felt a shudder crawl up his spine, as if something hideous had just entered the room. Something hideous actually did enter the room, actually.

"I have to hand it to you, kid. I never did think you would get this far." Hearing the voice through magical projection and hearing it in person were two entirely different things. He glanced at the left door hole. Standing there, with a limp Princess Zelda in one arm, was Ganondorf.

"And you wind mage," Ganondorf jeered at Vaati, "You were the last one I ever expected to see again."

Vaati shrugged and gave a mock smile. "What can I say, I don't like to die." then he glared at the Gerudo. "Having a grudge or two can do that." he spat.

"Hmph. Pests, every single one of you." said the dark man, dismissing the mage's comments. "But I'm in the mood for some sport." He disappeared. Link tried to run after him, at least to try and reach Zelda, but the Gerudo King laughed in his face. "Make it to the top of the tower and we'll settle this like men." And then he disappeared completely.

"Looks like we have to spring another trap." Vaati growled. He glanced at Link. "Are you ready for this?"

The boy took a deep breath and gripped the Sword in his hand, feeling its strength surge into him. "As ready as I'll ever be." And then he headed into the left door hole and climbing up a spiral staircase. He didn't pay attention to whether or not the mage was following him or not. At this point, it was just between him and Ganon. He was going to save Zelda.

* * *

Originally, I planned to have this chapter much longer. I was actually going to include everything about the climbing of the tower in it... But I realized that it was going to take way much more time and description than I would've liked... So I'm going to do something simple and easy next chapter. Ayup...

Holy crap... I just realized... I'm getting up to the last battle? When the hell did that happen?!


	51. OH NOEZ! TOO MUCH WIN!

My internet's being SO stupid today! Grr... Anyways, I tried to make this as EPIC I could. I hope I succeeded. Especially since I was listening to "Libera me from Hell" the whole time (Gurren Lagann ftw!). Oh, and sorry **link2832** but that's not how it's going to go down.

I'm sorry, seems I wasn't quite politically correct before. Instead of Christmas or Chrisanukah, I'm going to cover all my bases and say it's like Chrismahanukwaanzakuh come early! And no, I totally didn't steal that from a commercial... And because of a request, the chapter tab thingamajig is going to keep the "oh noez, too much win" title. The chapter's correct title, though, is:

* * *

**Chapter 51: Sea Tyrant Ganon**

By the time he was standing before the final set of stairs he was wiped out. Ganon was on the next floor but climbing the tower had been easier said than done. Aside from the seemingly endless flights of stairs, the past floors that they came across were infested with all kinds of monsters-and not small fry. These were Dark Nuts, Dinofolos, Stalfos knights, even an adolescent dragon. While Vaati had helped in the defeat of the creatures, Link did all the running around and close combat fighting. And the stairs… after climbing them so fast he got dizzy. He hated the idea that he was right there, at what Vaati said was the last door to the tower and he was too exhausted to go in. He knew he had to go in and save Zelda (and the Sirens again) but he also knew that in his current condition, he'd be turned into a pile of ash within seconds.

He kept breathing heavily, still debating whether he should wait a bit before going in and confronting Ganondorf.

"Useless boy." He heard Vaati mutter. Link was about to shoot the mage a dirty look but he snapped his fingers and a gust of wind came upon Link and revitalized him. He tried not to gape at what the pale man had just done, but it didn't work since he just snapped, "That won't happen again."

Link just smiled and nodded, the fire returning to his spirit. "Let's get him."

Vaati just grumbled something.

So he wouldn't expend his energy on running, he walked up the stairs. All the fear and anxiety that he had bottled up had burst out as he took each step. He was trembling, he knew it. He was surprised his knees hadn't buckled on him, but he had to keep going. It was too late to turn back, even if he wanted to. The Master Sword glowed in anticipation in his grip giving off a strange magical lighting in the corridor. He glanced over at Vaati, who had a poker face on. He wondered if the mage felt this too: terror and a strange sense of excitement at the same time. Probably not.

They came to the final floor. Ganon stood there, holding himself with an immense sense of smug dignity. Zelda was on the floor, looking like if she had just been cast away like a broken doll. In the ceiling, three blue crystals gleamed, each containing a Siren.

"I was hoping you'd be exhausted after all the little gifts I had prepared for you. It doesn't seem like it worked," Ganondorf said disgustedly. He glared at Vaati. "You probably had something to do with that, mage."

"I'm not in the mood for idle chatter." the mage said with a tinge of anger. "Hand over the girl and release the fish women and we won't have to kill you."

Link just gave the mage a startled look. Was Vaati being diplomatic?

"You already know how this is going to play out. I thought you said you weren't in the mood for idle chatter?" the Gerudo King mocked.

Vaati shrugged. "Force of habit."

"Whatever! Just let everyone go!" Link shouted angrily.

Ganon gave a cocky smile and chuckled for a moment before saying, "You've got spine, kid. You're even carrying that enchanted toothpick." he pointed to the Master Sword, "It's not going to work."

The Sword shuddered in his hands and Link could almost feel the anger from the Sword transferring into him, though to say that the anger was all the Sword would be a lie.

"I like that look in your eyes." The Evil King smirked. "I wonder if it'll keep…" he thrust a fist in front of his face, showing off a glowing triangle on it. He began to shift and contort, and Link felt Vaati pull him back a little. The boy kept his fierce gaze but took note how the mage seemed tense at the sight of Ganon shaking crazily. The crystals with the Sirens crashed down around the Gerudo in a triangular form, gleaming brighter than ever. A black shadow crawled over the man and he grew and grew into something that didn't even look human. When the darkness faded, in Ganon's place was a giant pig-like creature that roared so fiercely and loudly, the room shook violently.

"What happened to him?" Link asked.

"He intends to smash us to bits in a hideous other worldly form." Vaati said plainly.

"How do you know that?" Link asked a bit nervously.

"One, why else would he do that? Two, it's what I would do. Now run." he said, immediately dashing off to the side.

Link followed suit in the opposite direction just as a massive arm crashed down into the floor. The arm seemed stuck in the floor, and Link wasn't even asking how thick the floors were, he just ran and made a slash at his arm. He fell back onto his backside as the Sword sang in insult in hands. Ganon's massive arm went back to his side and he gave a deep, throaty laugh. "Foolish! That little stick can't harm me!"

A blast of lightning struck the floor near Link. The boy jumped and ran. Why couldn't the master Sword cut him? If there was one thing he knew about the Master Sword, it was that its blade never dulled. And the way the blade was repelled… it was like he had struck an extremely thick shield! He was so distracted by why his sword wasn't cutting he didn't notice a gigantic tail heading towards him. He noticed after it had impacted into his shield and sent him flying to the wall. The only thing that had stopped him from impact was a gust of wind acting like a pillow and letting him land on his feet, but fell to his knees quickly.

"Get up." He felt the mage grab him and pull him up. The boy didn't pay too much attention to it. He paid more attention to the shield that was now dented over his arm. He grimaced at it but when another strike of lightning came, both ran away behind a Siren crystal.

"The Master Sword can't cut him!" Link said frantically.

"I noticed, and keep it down will you? I'm sure he's not deaf…" Vaati said quietly, glancing through the crystal at the monstrous Ganon who seemed to have no idea where they were. "He's sacrificed speed for power… apparently some of his intelligence as well. We need to strike when he's like this. while he doesn't know where we are."

"Maybe you didn't hear: _the Sword can't cut_!" Link whispered angrily.

"I heard!" the mage snapped. "He's siphoning power from the Sirens to give him skin like steel and the lightning control. He can probably do more but I don't intend to find out about those."

Link looked at the crystal they were hiding behind. He made to swing the Sword but was stopped when Vaati said, "That won't work."

"Then what do we do?!" he snapped.

The sorcerer thought for a moment. "You know how you usually come up with a plan that involves me distracting the opponent and you fighting off the real threat?"

"Yeah?"

"Your turn. You be the distraction and I'll be taking care of the real threat."

Link blinked for a moment and was about to utter a really loud, "_What?!_" but managed to keep himself from doing so. So instead he whispered and very insulted, "_What?!_"

Vaati rolled his eyes. "You heard me."

"I don't care what you say, I think he's the real threat!" he said angrily.

"But if you can distract him long enough, I can dispel the crystals and you can hack and slash at him to your heart's content afterward." said the mage matter-of-factly. Before Link could object, Vaati pushed him out into Ganon's view.

Link would've liked to think that the high-pitched girly scream came from Zelda but since she was still unconscious… It was a nice thought. He knew he was the one who screamed and he also knew he was running for dear life. He heard the giant Ganon taunt him, but what exactly was said he didn't know; he wasn't really listening.

A thick bolt of lightning struck right in front of him, forcing him to flee in a different direction. Unfortunately, the only direction that wouldn't compromise Vaati was heading right towards Ganon. Whimpering in his mind, he turned and headed right for the giant beat. He laughed his deep, throaty laugh and while he did so, Link noticed something: this new Ganon's immense size left him with many openings. He picked up his speed and by the time Ganon had noticed it was too late. Link rolled past between the giant pig's legs and, completely improvising at this point, grabbed onto his tail and began to climb. It was a little difficult, since the monster kept moving around violently after he had figured out what the boy was trying to do. Those thick arms weren't very flexible; he couldn't reach behind his back. On his back, Link could keep him occupied and that he did. The fiery red hair that still remained on the pig creature's head was very pullable.

As Ganon flailed in anger trying to reach Link on the back of his neck, the boy decided to give the giant pig a short break. Only because he wanted to see what Vaati was up to. He looked over to the crystal where the mage had pushed him out to distract Ganon. He was no longer there but the crystal was no longer bright. It had dimmed down to a transparent rock with no luster and a limp mermaid inside. He glanced over at another crystal and saw the mage there. He had one hand on the crystal and another hand doing some sort of sign. He was chanting something and even Link could tell that some sort of magic was being channeled from the crystal.

His attention was brought back to Ganon when the transformed man flailed wildly again. Link would have flown off if he hadn't gripped a red lock of hair at the last moment. The giant pig then began to shout profanities and curses at him but paused in mid sentence. That worried Link because it most probably meant that Ganon had an idea to finally rip off the back of his neck. His theory was proved when Ganon's massive head turned to Zelda's direction.

"You want to save her, don't you?" said giant pig evilly. The thick, pudgy fingers of his giant hand reached for girl.

Not thinking and in a rage, Link leaped onto Ganon's shoulder shouting, "Don't you dare touch her!"

As soon as he said it, fast as the lightning he was unleashing on the room, the meaty hand shot to his shoulder and grabbed Link. "Stupid kid!" Ganon mocked as he shook the boy in front of him. "You can't hope to defeat me!" And then he squeezed.

Link screamed and unwillingly let his hand lose its grip, causing the Master Sword to fall to the floor. He made a desperate attempt to catch it, but Ganon's grip didn't allow for much movement. That and Ganon squeezed again, this time harder.

The screaming caused Vaati to glance up and watch the boy's predicament. He frowned. He was on the last crystal and extracting the magic from the crystal was actually taking more energy than giving. If he stopped now he he'd have to start all over again, and he knew he didn't have the energy to do it. But if Link died then there was no chance of winning this battle. Not daring to remove his hand, else disrupting the spell completely, he looked around. The Master Sword was on the floor…. Not much he could do about that. Even if he could touch it, it'd disrupt the spell. He looked around again and found Zelda. She shifted uncomfortably but did not wake up.

"Wake up!" he shouted. Zelda's face contorted a bit but she still didn't wake up. "_Wake up_!" the mage repeated irately.

Her eyes slowly opened then. She sat up and looked around confusedly, as if she didn't know where she was. She then gave Vaati a puzzled look. "Who are you…?" she asked groggily. Then she heard Link scream. Her eyes widened and she looked up with horror.

"I can't do anything for him so you do something!" Vaati snapped at her. He then proceeded to ignore Zelda, completely missing her asking how she was supposed to do that.

When Zelda received no answer, she bit her lip and looked back up to Link. Ganon was squeezes him, but not killing him. He was making him suffer… She felt the anger swell up in her. She looked around and saw something on the floor. A sword. She scrambled up and ran to it. She picked it up and immediately felt something surge into her. A kind of power she'd never felt before. Whatever it was, it just made her determination to save Link from his suffering burn even more. Then she realized she was holding _the_ Master Sword. She would've gawked in amazement if it wasn't for Link's screaming. She bared her teeth and then ran to Ganon's thickly muscled leg, stabbing at it.

At the same moment she stabbed, Vaati had finished depleting the last Siren crystal of its magical energies. The Sword sank into the pig flesh of Ganon who screamed in angry surprise and let go of Link. The boy fell but everything seemed like a dream to him. He knew it wasn't a dream, though. He knew that he wouldn't wake up right before impact. He heard Zelda cry out for him. That's when he woke from his daze. He saw her looking up at him worriedly, and she was getting closer with each passing moment. He thought he'd surely die but he slowed at the last moment and saw Vaati waving an arm, no doubt saving his life in that wave.

Link landed safely on his feet but fell to his knees when he found that his legs refused to carry his weight. Zelda reached for him but they were both thrown out of the way by the wind as an angry Ganon attempted to step on them. They landed by Vaati, who promptly called them both idiots as they staggered up. Link could still not stand on his two feet.

"Link, are you okay?!" a panicked Zelda asked.

"He was only squeezed by a massive force of evil intent on destroying all of us slowly and painfully." The wind mage snapped sarcastically. Zelda shot him a look.

"The Master Sword…" Link grumbled.

Zelda blinked at her friend's comment and then remembered the blade she carried in her hand. "Here," she said as she handed it to him.

Link gripped the Sword and felt the pain all over his body slowly ebb away. He knew the Sword was only dulling the pain, not healing him, but he was just glad he hadn't suffered from any broken bones.

"Vaati," he started, "Protect Zelda and get her out of here, okay?"

"I don't take orders from you, boy." the mage said bitterly, but his face actually softened a bit as he shrugged and continued on to say, "But I'll do it anyway, just-this-once."

"Huh? No, I'm staying-" Zelda couldn't finish because she squealed as Vaati picked her up.

"No time for argument, Princess. Your boyfriend wants us to leave and leave we shall." he told her as he started to run for the exit. She tried to struggle but eventually gave up and just watched as Link gave her an apologetic smile before going back out into the open to fight Ganon once again.

The giant pig laughed mockingly. "Those two can run all they want, boy, but I _will_ get them when I'm finished with you." he said condescendingly.

Link just smirked. "I think I can take you." he said.

"Well see about that!"

Lightning encircled Link and the circle began to shrink.

_Master Sword,_ he thought, _Let's finish him!_

He slashed horizontally at the Lightning, causing it to dispel and fade away. Ganon smashed into the floor and Link rolled away. Unlike last time, where it seemed the giant pig's arm was stuck on the floor, it lifted up easily and quickly went to smash at Link again. He kept dodging and dispelling lightning, rolling away from the smashes, and enduring the angry taunts of Ganon. He wondered when he would get an opening.

Ganon roared angrily and loudly. So loud, that Link froze and the whole room shook. He thrust an arm into the air, reaching for something. Link was about to seize his chance but a shock of lightning actually _broke_ through the ceiling, shattering it. The lightning formed a giant trident in Ganon's hand he thrust the trident into the floor. The floor began to shatter and crumble as shocks of electricity coursed through it. Link knew he screamed at every shock the lightning dealt him and at every time a rock struck him. He was falling to the floor below, and he knew he wasn't going to land comfortably this time.

He landed roughly on his back and felt all his pain coming back to him. As soon as it came, it quickly dulled as the Sword worked its magic. He rolled away as a rock attempted to fall on him. He actually had to roll away quite a bit as the ceiling and the remains of the last floor kept coming down. When there wasn't enough time to roll he'd hold his shield up over him. The room shook violently as Ganon landed in roughly on his two massive feet. He roared in anger. Link stumbled up and held his sword and shield, ready for the next round.

Or at least he thought he was ready.

A torrent of water began to fill the room. Link suddenly realized why. The huge blast of lighting that formed the trident had to come from _somewhere_. And that somewhere was from the sky, miles and miles up over the surface. The ocean water was now returning back into the fortress. He remembered the horrible fact that salt water conducted electricity even better than fresh water.

Ganon grinned evilly, his tusks making it look even more dangerous. He thrust his trident down into the damp floor. Link thought it was going to end right there, but it didn't. Electricity surged throughout the flooding floor but it avoided Link. Confused, he looked around blankly and then saw the Sirens. They were awake and out of their prisons now, driving the electrical currents away from him. They were protecting him.

His confidence finally joined the party that his nerves had been having. He looked at Ganon, who seemed angrier than ever, and smiled. He charged straight towards the giant pig beast. Link was getting close and Ganon thrust his trident into the floor where Link was. At the last second, the boy rolled ahead… right between Ganon's legs again. He grabbed onto his tail and began to climb. Like before, Ganon flailed angrily, desperately trying to get the boy off. But Link still held onto the thick skin of the beast and climbed and climbed, up until he climbed up onto the beast's head. Both Ganon's hands sped to his head, but with a cry Link thrust the Master Sword right into Ganon's head.

A blinding light erupted throughout the whole room.


	52. The End

This is technically the last chapter. Damn... the last one... it really doesn't feel like it. It's weird...

* * *

Zelda gave a heavy sigh. She didn't really mind the flying eyeball bats or the Bokoblins. She did mind that this strange man, Vaati as Link called him, had dragged her away from Link. Sure, it was Link's request but… she wanted to be there.

As she gazed at the massive fortress before them she frowned. Something was coming out of the fortress.

"Mr. Vaati," she said, "I think there's water coming out from the fortress."

Vaati walked over to where she was, about to scold her for such nonsense when he saw that she spoke the truth.

"What's happening in there?" Zelda asked worriedly.

"Would you like me to lie to make you feel better or do you want my honest opinion?" said the mage.

She bit her lip. He wasn't nice.

A bright light came from the fortress. She blocked her eyes and when it died down she lowered her arm. She yelped as she saw that even more water was sputtering out from the fortress. She heard the man next to her curse and the Bokoblins squawking in fear.

She lowered her head and held her hands together.

"What are you doing?" Vaati asked in an irritated tone.

"Shush," she said just as irritated, "I'm praying."

The mage scoffed. He doubted the goddesses would do anything to help, they never did. To his surprise, a faint glow came around the ship. The water level began to rise and as it did, the ship glowed ever more brightly. Finally, the brightness encompassed the whole ship and when it left, they were on the sea. The sunlight almost seemed to sting from how long they head been under the waves but he found himself chuckling in amusement. The goddesses _did_ decide to do something useful.

Zelda just peered over the edge of the boat. She looked desperately at the water to as far as she could see. All she saw was the sea. _Please goddesses…_ she thought desperately, _Please say Link survived…_

One of the Bokoblins squawked eagerly.

"What is it?" asked Vaati angrily.

It squawked excitably again and pointed out to the water. The mage scowled and went over to that side of the ship to see what the commotion was about. Zelda followed and quickly glued herself to the rail. She smiled broadly at what she saw. Three young women she knew were the Sirens were swimming towards them, pulling Link with them. He was unconscious and scratched up, but he seemed fine.

Ganondorf was gone then. He had succeeded. That was something to be happy about but she was really just relieved to see that he was fine. She bowed her head again and then clasped her hands together again.

Vaati forked an eyebrow as he saw the girl praying again. The boy was fine, what more could she want? "What are praying about now?"

She smiled and blushed a bit. "That me and Link will have a happily ever after."

The mage frowned. "Forgive me if I gag."

* * *

The waves were splish-splashing on rocks and sand, palm trees were swaying in the ocean breezes. Warm sunlight poured in through his window and slowly made its way to the young boy's eyes.

The warmth and brightness of the light slipped through his eyelids. The boy made strange facial expressions as he tried to figure out what was causing the strange light in his dreams. Realizing he was asleep, he slowly opened his eyes, shutting them immediately from the brightness of the sun.

The sun?!

He shot up and the winced in pain, regretting getting up so fast. He looked around. He was in his bed at his home… How'd he get there? He racked his brains. He remembered thrusting the Master Sword into Ganon's skull… but everything after that was just a flash of light.

"Oh my…"

He turned his head to the doorway. His mother was there, tears rolling down her face.

"Mom…?"

She ran and hugged him. "I thought you would never wake up…" she said just barely in a whisper.

"Ow… ow… Mom… it hurts…" he said. It really did. In the battle with Ganon, the Master Sword shielded him from pain. Now he was feeling everything that the Master Sword had been preventing him from feeling.

His mother pulled away quickly. "I'm sorry…" she said sheepishly, wiping her tears away. "We have just been worried… You have been asleep for almost a week now…"

"Is Zelda okay?" Link asked.

His mother nodded. "Of course… she has wanted to visit you, but ever since she returned the king hasn't let her out of his sight. Your grandfather's been going and updating her on your condition-he's doing it now too."

Link sighed in relief and nodded. Everything hurt, but he felt better than ever before just knowing Zelda was safe. He supposed he had to thank Vaati for keeping her safe in the end…

Vaati?

"Um, what about Va-erm, Haizea?" Link asked.

His mother tilted her head in confusion. "No, I haven't seen him at all… He was with you at the time?"

There was a knock at the doorway before Link could answer. Both he and his mother looked over. Bandaged in a few places, but otherwise looking fine, was Nabooru.

"Hey there, kid. How are you feeling?" she asked. She was normal again.

He smiled. "It just hurts to breathe."

She chuckled as she walked and sat down next to his mom and the bed. "That's too bad. I gotta thank you for before, though…"

For before… Link remembered. Koume and Kotake, those witches… they had possessed her. He shook his head, "It was nothing…"

"It wasn't nothing, kid." Nabooru said. "You and pale face saved me back there. I owe you two a lot. I'd have gone and thanked pale face too, but he just disappeared. It's not surprising your mom hasn't seen him." She shrugged and then messed up his hair, "I'm just glad to see you're okay."

Despite his mother's worries and objections he decided to go to Hyrule Castle to see Zelda. He required crutches, but other than that he said he'd fare well on his own. He wanted to make the trip alone. On the way, people he didn't even know kept talking to him. He heard "thank you" and "you're a real hero" and all sorts of things like that. He supposed he was a hero after that and he just smiled. It was a good feeling to be recognized by so many people… but it was a little weird too. Before the whole adventure he had just been a kid with a sword.

The guards gratefully let him in. He didn't get a moment alone after that. He saw Zelda, yes, but he wasn't able to talk to her alone. Her father kept insisting on thanking him immediately so he spent a while shaking hands with him and about every other noble of the Hyrule's Court. If his arm hurt before, he certainly couldn't feel it afterwards.

After the never-ending stream of handshakes, Zelda managed to drag him away from all the publicity. They managed to find some privacy on the balcony and Link just sat himself down on the bench by the wall of it.

"Link…" Zelda started as she took a seat next to him, "Thank you… for everything. You saved me, like you said you would always do…"

Link felt a flush come over his face. "I promised I would, right?" he said a bit nervously.

She smiled. "You did promise it. But in saving me you also saved all of Hyrule." she said. "I heard that just before you came to get me that Ganondorf's forces started to overwhelm Caste Town. But as soon as you defeated Ganondorf, they just started to give up!"

"All a part of being a hero I guess?" he said nervously. He felt weird calling himself a hero, like it was an honor that he didn't deserve. "Are all of his forces gone, though?"

"We think so…" Zelda started. "Daddy's been sending ships to scout out islands nearby to check for any Moblins and Bokoblins that fled."

Islands…? Link suddenly remembered. "Did they stop by an island with a big mansion on it, yet?"

Zelda was puzzled but she thought for a moment. "I think I remembered hearing something like that… It was deserted I think."

Deserted? Link wasn't sure if it was a good thing or bad thing, but he hoped it meant that those two had gotten home… wherever it was.

"Link," Zelda interrupted his thoughts, "Before you came and saved me… when you had come to me like a ghost… Did you mean what you said back then…?"

Link was redder than ever now. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. She smiled.

"I think now would be a bad time to talk about it…" she said apologetically. "You're in horrible shape… I think maybe we could talk about it when you're feeling better."

Link felt a sort of pain, like a disappointment in himself, but he nodded.

Someone called for Zelda. She looked back over her shoulder a bit, seeming a little annoyed. "I'll be right back." And then she stood and walked over back into the crowded room.

He just sat on the bench, angry at himself for not being able to admit it again. A gust of wind suddenly blew and he had a feeling he wasn't alone anymore.

"Still can't admit it, eh?" said a mocking voice.

Link turned his head and saw Vaati standing on the ledge of the balcony. "I admitted to it," he confessed, "I just cant do it again, I guess…"

The mage shrugged. "I wouldn't know what you're going through."

"Nabooru wants to thank you." Link added.

Vaati scowled. "Good for her. I think I'd do well not to see her unattractive face for a very long time." he said scornfully.

The boy just chuckled. The feud would never end, it seemed. "So… are you here to finish me off?" Link asked.

The mage thought for a moment. "I'd like to yes… but no. I have no interest in it anymore." he said plainly.

He looked at him strangely, not understanding why the mage suddenly lost interest in killing him. Not that he wanted to die, but he knew Vaati wasn't the type to just change his mind on a whim.

"I don't see why it's bothering you." Vaati told him. "Frankly, I thought you'd be happy to hear that you'd live long enough to court your princess."

He didn't let that last comment get to him. "But why?"

The mage sighed. He seemed to have trouble grasping the words. "I don't like you." he started, "Don't _ever_ get the idea I do like you. However, after traveling with you for so long… I seem to have lost the desire to kill you."

Link just smiled. He knew what the translation was. "You're my friend too." he told the mage.

"I never said anything of the sort!" Vaati shot back angrily.

Link just laughed about it and Vaati just seethed. After he had had finished his chuckle-fest Link looked back at the sorcerer. "What are you going to do now?"

The wind mage shrugged. "I'm not quite sure. My plans for the goddesses are going to have to be put on hold for a while. I suppose I'll raise the Wind Palace again. I'm taking that woman, that's for sure. I can get Poe to come back to work too…"

Link laughed again. "I think he'd like that."

After a moment or two of silence Vaati finally said, "I should leave now. It isn't wise for me to stay."

"I guess this is goodbye for good, huh?" Link asked.

"Probably." said the mage.

The boy nodded. "Then see you later."

The mage cocked his head to the side and smirked. "I hope not." And then a cyclone came and went, and Vaati was gone.

Link just smiled. Zelda came back then.

"Sorry I took so long," she started, "Did something happen?"

He shook his head. "No. Hey, Zelda… I did mean it, what I said back then."

She froze and then smiled. "I feel the same way, you know." And then she sat down next to him and clutched his hand.

They sat there like that for a long while, wishing it could last forever.

* * *

... That's it. We still have the sidestory coming up but that's the end of _this_ story. I'm a little sad. Anyways, special shout outs go to **fleets**, **keetongu**, and **Evil Riggs**. All my reviewers are special to me, and I love you all, but you three are the ones that frequently reviewed, as well as some of the earliest, and for that I appreciate it. It lets my know you've really stuck it out till the end.

Kudos to everyone whose read this whole thing. I'm sorry if I made anyone feel bad by not mentioning them, but I appreciate you all too! I love you all, thanks for reading this! Make sure to stick around for the special sidestory, though! I'll have it ready soon!


	53. Special Sidestory

It's very short but I really enjoyed writing this little monologue. Poe's such an interesting character...

* * *

**Special side story: A Day in the Afterlife**

I am Master Vaati's most loyal servant, Poe. I used to be a soldier in Hyrule Castle, but I died, but even in death I'm _still_ Master Vaati's most loyal servant! He always treats me like dirt but I know he doesn't mean it…

Ah, who am I kidding? Of course he means it.

When I was alive, I still had the name Poe. I was just a regular Joe of a soldier. My life was expendable and I didn't really mind. I didn't really care about anything. Then one day, the Master had infiltrated the castle. I still don't know what he was doing there exactly but when I met him… He was just so inspiring! He tossed me around like a rag doll without even touching me! I'd never seen anything like it before… or felt anything like it either… it hurt a lot… All I know, is that display of power fascinated me so much I ended up getting on my knees begging to be put under his service. Of course he denied me at first, but I made a pest out of myself and wouldn't leave him alone until he said yes. Ever since I've not only been his most loyal servant but his best! I pride myself in it! After all, who else can say that they still serve their most beloved master in death? Not many, I can guarantee that!

It was horrible when Master Vaati just disappeared. I had heard the goddesses confronted him. I had thought him dead for so long… Every day was so meaningless without him… Soon enough I was a typical Poe, just wandering around scaring the living daylights out of people. Such a pitiful afterlife…

I never realized how miserable having no purpose was… It's probably why I was so miserable in life up until I met the Master. I mean, I never had a girl to my own and no girls were ever interested in me. I can't claim to have had friends, because I didn't. I'm not sure even my commander liked me. Meeting the Master was the best thing that ever happened to me, dying the second best thing that ever happened. I don't much care that I dead as a hero to Hyrule. That's a lie and only the Master, that other soldier, and myself know it. No, dying was the best thing that ever happened simply because I became even more useful to the Master then!

Spying was no problem! I gave him the best information anyone could ever give! And interplanar travel has some very good uses. I have access to the dead as well as the living! Yes, I couldn't have been happier then!

But then… when I thought the Master was gone…

Real Poes have it hard. Their existence is simply pointless, as I said before. If it's possible to go insane when you're dead then I must've been insane a good portion of the time. And oh how I mourned for Master Vaati each day! To believe he was dead! When I saw him again… Oh, I had not realized how insubordinate I had been but I was so, so happy! The Master was _not_ dead! I had purpose again!

Of course, after that I haven't heard from him…

The Master has not forgotten me, has he?

Oh no… Oh no… he most certainly has! I'm sure of it! The Master has always hated me! Oh woe! My Master has abandoned me… I am to wander the darkness of the Catacombs for the rest of my never ending afterlife then… If that is so, then I hope some warrior, might or weak, shall come and slay me! An afterlife of _not_ serving the Master is pointless! Pointless, pointless, pointless!

… What's this? I hear him… Yes, Master Vaati?! What? You need me? I'm needed right away to help restore the Palace? Yes, master! Right away!

Oh happy day! The Master has not forgotten me! I can go on with a purpose in my afterlife! Yes, I have never been happier! The master may hate me but even he knows I am his most loyal servant! Oh happy, happy day!

* * *

You know, hes treated like dirt and knows it, yet loves it. He's such a funny guy that Poe. He doesn't consider it a horrible thing. By far, Poe is one of the biggest mysteries I've ever created. But like I said, I enjoy people who have warped minds. Does this mean I'm a bit warped myself?

That said, I guess I will go through with the sequel. It will most likely be a oneshot. So, I'm going to plan it out and write it up fairly soon. Tomorrow if I get the chance. After all, I need to be all clear in November. NaNoWriMo is a cruel mistress, I must be free of responsibitly during that time.

EDIT: SCRATCH THAT LAST PART I JUST GOT AN EVEN BETTER IDEA FOR THE SEQUEL! It'll still be very OC centric but whatev. It would be longer and _not_ a one shot but that means I have to go in the planning stage for a while. I have to flesh everything out and all that good stuff. There'll be updates on profiles if you're interested in it.


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